FAO and the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC 2012): recent events

21/06/2012

In the framework of the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC 2012) FAO is organizing a series of events in collaboration with partners including farmers, fisherfolks, forest holders, livestock keepers, organizations, representatives from other civil society, decision-makers and UN agencies.

On the 29th May 2012, FAO held a special event during the 69th meeting of the Committee on Commodity Problems, to renew its support to Cooperatives and Producer Organizations. This high level event celebrated the nomination of two FAO Goodwill Ambassadors for the International Year of Cooperatives - Ms Elisabeth Atangana (Cameroon) and His Excellency Roberto Rodrígues (Brasil). Her Excellency Laura Chinchilla Miranda, President of Costa Rica, gave a welcoming speech. For more information, please visit the FAO Media Center.

In collaboration with World Farmers’ Organization (WFO), FAO hosted a joint session on ”What is the enabling environment needed for thriving Producer Organizations and Cooperatives” in the context of the WFO General Assembly, held on June 6-9, 2012. The session was aimed at better understanding the main constraints faced by farmers and what is needed to ensure a more favorable environment, including policies, legal framework, economic incentives and dialogue platform needed in order to allow the development and sustainability of producer organizations. For more information, please see the Agenda and main presentations of the event available below.

To support this discussion, WFO and FAO sent a questionnaire to get a better understanding of farmers’s main needs in terms of overcoming constraints and difficulties and also, enabling factors that can be identified as instance of success in supporting producer organizations. Preliminary results were presented and discussed during the WFO- FAO joint session. A declaration containing concrete requests for action on behalf of the farmers to address national governments in the context of the ongoing International Year of Cooperatives will be developed.

For further information:

FAO Special Event on Working Together for the 2012 International Year of Cooperatives, 29 May 2012:

WFO-FAO joint session presentations, 6-9 June 2012:

Situations Surrounding Japan and JA Group’s Activities. Cooperatives’role to address the challenges we’re facing, Mitsuo MURAKAMI, Vice President JA Zenchu (Central Union of Agricultural Cooperatives), 6th June 2012
The environment for Agricultural Co-operatives in Norway
Berit Hundåla, Vice president Farmers Union of Norway, 6th June 2012