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Juan SOMAVIA, Director-General, International Labour Office ILOCo-operating for decent work (pdf)Thank you for your invitation. I am so happy to be with all of you this morning.I thank our Norwegian hosts-not only for their hospitality, but for Norway's rich history of support for the co-operative movement, and for its key role and partnership with us at the ILO in our work in this vital area. I know from personal experience during our struggle for democracy in Chile that you can rely on Norwegian friends. They don't follow fashion, but if they think you are right, will support you loyally when most in need. And so it is with co-operatives. I must highlight the presence at your Congress of Prime Minister Bondevik. I am also honoured to share this platform with Minister Rodrigues. His presence here embodies the hopes not only of the worldwide co-operative movement over which he presided, but also the hopes of the Brazilian people for a better future with President Lula. I am equally delighted to be in the company of Minister Johnson. She has renovated development thinking, has the courage to innovate and is rightly demanding more efficiency, effectiveness and team play from international development organisations. Most of all, I thank you-the members and delegates of the International Co-operative Alliance General Assembly. Thank you for the work you are leading, the values you are upholding, the example you are setting. In communities all over the world, coops keep the lights burning, the water running, the credit flowing, … the hope growing. The co-operative movement represents an astounding global network rooted in local communities and realities stretching from every corner of the world and every sector of society. And yet the co-operative enterprise, what we at the ILO call the 'Co-operative Advantage', is not sufficiently acknowledged as a key tool that provides solutions to many of our contemporary challenges. In the world of neoliberal economics you are simply not fashionable. So my message today is simple and straightforward. I have come to support you. To do it with conviction in my heart. Whether it is voice and representation in the community, creating jobs and reducing poverty, combining values and profits, or making globalization more fair and inclusive-the co-operative enterprise, the co-operative movement, must be considered a central actor for more just, more productive, more balanced societies. For those that don't want to hear, let me say it loud and clear, you represent the present and the future, not a relic of the past. And yet we are proud of our history. The ILO-ICA partnership stretches back to our earliest days. The first ILO Director General, Albert Thomas, perhaps put it best when he addressed your 1930 Congress: "Our two organizations," he said, "(have) been technically and constitutionally linked together. But the thing that matters most is neither technique nor procedure, it is the spirit which animates the Organizations from within--the communion of the hearts."So we celebrate a rich legacy together, but our strength has always been our vision for the future, our common focus on tomorrow. It was evident in our hand-in-hand partnership last year to establish the ILO Promotion of Co-operatives Recommendation 193. This is the only international policy framework for co-operative development that has the added value of being adopted by governments, employer's organisations and trade unions, and supported by relevant civil society organisations. It is a modern reaffirmation of the role of co-operatives in a globalized era. And, of course, it is clear in what I see and feel throughout this hall -- the extraordinary diversity, the boundless energy, the infectious positive spirit. But let us also recognise that we needed that new framework. Co-operatives suffered first from the attempts at state control and then from ideological dismissal. We needed a new statement of the value of the movement to society and the economy, and, thus, of the legal and policy environment it should expect from governments. The ICA played an absolutely critical role in that process, fielding ICA members, on all three benches of the ILO negotiating table! I am also proud that the annex to the Recommendation is an extract from this Assembly's 1995 statement on the Co-operative Identity, pioneered in Rochdale more than 150 years ago. The pluralism in this hall is eloquent testimony not just of who you represent as delegates, but what you represent for development. You are diverse. But respect for diversity, after all, requires adaptation to different circumstances. It is only possible with a creative spirit. A spirit that can find different ways to solve the same development challenge, a spirit some might consider remarkably out of tune with today's dehumanising world, namely the belief that innovation and inventiveness can be motivated by something other than purely material gain. Meeting social needs-organizing with a community spirit-putting need ahead of greed--also drives innovation. You prove it every day by transforming values into profits-by "doing business the democratic way". We know that something is missing in the world today. There is unprecedented wealth. Path breaking technologies. New ways of bringing people together. Yet, the prevailing economic mindset stands fixed, locked in a one-size-fits all worldview. You take a country, we are told, immerse it into a marinade of predictable and uniform economic adjustment policies, and everything will come out right. Well, we know that everything is not coming out right. Let me talk about the world of work. EMPLOYMENT CREATION: A GLOBAL PRIORITY Our 'communion of the hearts' beats with the rhythm of a basic common understanding. We believe labour is not a commodity. We believe work is more than income. Work is dignity. Work is a source of self-worth. Work is a source of family stability. And work is a source of peace in the community. Work is at the heart of the economic, political, social concerns of people. No politician running for office anywhere can be elected without offering something tangible in the field of work--more jobs, better jobs, quality social protection. This is at the centre of how people express their needs and expectations. And it is at the root of much anxiety and insecurity in the world today. If you look at the global economy from the perspective of people, its biggest structural failure is the inability to create enough jobs where people live. Today, more than one billion people are unemployed or underemployed worldwide - and the continuing growth of the informal economy reaches 90 percent in many poor countries. People see this as an absence of human values, a global economy without a moral compass. Make no mistake. This is not only a North-South issue. It affects every society and every economy in the world. My perception is that people have hopes for globalization. But they just don't see its benefits fairly distributed. They are worried about greed-dominated, power-dominated economic decision making. They want respect, voice and participation. They want fairness and accountability. Above all, they want opportunity - dignity through employment - quality jobs where they are born, where they want to live, and where they want to stay. This is not happening. The result is increasing pressure to migrate. The political consequence is increasing resistance to foreign workers. And we know well that unemployed and marginalized people are fertile ground for those seeking extremist solutions of violence and terrorism. I believe that widespread unemployment is one of the biggest security risks in the world today. We at the ILO have responded with the Decent Work Agenda - a people-centred strategy to make employment creation, rights at work, basic social protection and social dialogue a global priority for all international organisations and a local priority for all societies. And just a few weeks ago, there was an important breakthrough. The Presidents and Prime Ministers of every African nation together agreed to convene a first-of-its-kind special summit on Employment and Poverty. We are already working with the African Union and the government of Burkina Faso which will host the meeting. My report to the International Labour Conference this year was precisely on "Working out of Poverty". Work, after all, is the way out of poverty. There is a no way we will eradicate poverty without creating jobs. And the co-operative enterprise is a key productive link to make it happen. Last year, we also established a World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization chaired by two sitting Presidents-President Halonen of Finland and President Mkapa of Tanzania. It is made up of a diverse cross-section of leading thinkers-Nobel Prize winners, academics, business and labour leaders, civil society activists and political personalities from four continents with different experiences and sometimes divergent perspectives. We said let's show that dialogue on difficult issues can be fruitful. Let's bring the eyes of people back into the equation. One of the key points that is emerging is the fact that as seen by people, it generally appears that everything is done to facilitate the global-global trade, global communication, global finance, global investments. But people and families live locally, so they feel there has to be a balance between promoting the global and promoting the local. So employment, social protection, local development, enhancing local resources, social justice, all of this is at the very heart of people's concerns. And, of course, all of this is at the very heart of who you are. THE CHALLENGE AHEAD: CO-OPERATIVE AGENDA I believe we have arrived at an important political moment, a hopeful moment, to make a real difference. A space has been opened up for dialogue, understanding, the kind of values-based vision you have pursued through the years and the kind of bottom-line approach that has delivered 100 million jobs-more than all multinationals combined-and 800 million members. Enterprises with social goals, some of which have grown very large, embedded in local communities through tried and tested structures of accountability. You generate trust, the single most important asset that private enterprises throughout the world want to have. So today, I invite you to help us think together on a new ways of strengthening our alliance and humanizing globalization. Let me offer two specific suggestions. First, let's find ways to scale up our work to fight poverty. One of the most widespread concerns about globalisation is that intensified competition is creating social instability in which the weakest are most vulnerable, whether individuals, families or enterprises. I believe the co-operative movement provides a way of resolving these dilemmas. Voice and representation are key both to demand a change in policies but also to mobilise community action to build schools, clinics, roads, telecom and power connections, waste management systems, water supplies. Co-operatives, sometimes with the ILO's help, are doing this around the world. And we can see it on display in Ethiopia, as more small coffee growers gain market access… in Colombia, as a coop extends life-saving health care services to a quarter of the population…. in India, as farmers in more than 10,000 villages benefit from processing and marketing milk…in South Africa, as cooperatives provide care and comfort to those living with HIV/AIDS. But scattered projects are not enough. Let's take it to another level. I believe the co-operatives of the developed countries can make a huge contribution to financing these investments. Many of you are already fully engaged in this task. Today, I invite the ICA to develop together with the ILO a technical cooperation programme for the promotion and strengthening of co-operatives in developing countries. We should aim to ensure both that national poverty reduction strategies promote co-operatives and also that we develop the mechanisms to enable the very poorest to organize themselves and bring the power of co-operation into their communities. Would it be a dream to think that in the future every co-operative of developed countries would have a partnership with a developing world co-operative? That would create the most impressive global network of enterprise to enterprise cooperation! And it would provide a huge boost to the achievement of the goals of the UN Millennium Summit drive to cut extreme poverty by half by 2015. Second, let's strengthen our joint work to apply Recommendation 193. Recommendation 193 provides a framework for governments to develop the laws and administrative systems and policies that can enable positive experiences to be replicated many times over. With the help of the ICA and its members, the instrument has already been translated into 22 languages. And in the one short year since the adoption of 193, we have also seen it translated into real results at the local and national level. In South Africa, assistance in the development of a co-operative strategy has led to a new bill which should soon be on the statute books. Guinea-Bissau has adopted a national policy based on 193-and we have seen similar progress in places ranging from Canada to Croatia to Mongolia. Ten seminars have been held in Latin America to raise awareness. In Russia, the parliament has taken up rural cooperative development. And in China, the text has been used to discuss the conceptual basis for the country's future legal framework for cooperatives. Let me call attention to one specific aspect of 193. And that is highlighting the role of women in cooperatives-and calling for a greater role for gender equality. Reality has demonstrated the value of women managers and the key role women members play in the activities of cooperatives. It is time to do more to promote women to leadership positions in cooperatives-and, I would add, in most decision making bodies worldwide. I wish to acknowledge the strong Norwegian leadership on this issue. Gender equality is a key to 193, and it is key to strengthening cooperatives for the future. In this and other areas, I invite the ICA with the ILO to develop a multi-year programme to promote and implement Recommendation 193 and look for necessary resources together. Let's work together to better link your knowledge and experience with policy advice and put employment and enterprise creation at the centre of the global agenda. COMMON FUTURE That is what I would call our Common Co-operative Agenda. The ILO door is open to more ways and other ideas that you might have to make it real and move it forward. But I repeat: you are essential. You understand that the quality of work defines the quality of a society. You profit for a social purpose. And you are a living example in country after country, continent after continent, that values are good for the economy. I know there are those who say the only way to get ahead in today's world is by cutting corners-by using power for your own interests, by looking the other way at unethical practices. But they are wrong. All of us have to be vigilant in the struggle to uphold human values, nobody is perfect. I do not want to suggest that co-operatives are some sort of new wonder drug for all our social and economic illnesses. But let us also not undersell the enormous potential of value driven enterprise. The market for the co-operative way of organising to meet people's needs is growing. I am sure you will grasp that opportunity and, if the ILO can help, we will. When you boil it all down, the biggest challenge in the world is the same one that has echoed through the ages. How do you encourage people to think together, act together, work together, celebrate their diversity while seeing the world through a shared set of values, a shared set of interests and a shared understanding of the common future we are all facing. You answer that challenge the best way possible. Not with words, but through action. You are building a better world one community at a time. I believe in you and what you are doing. Let's keep co-operating together.  Roberto RODRIGUES, Minister of Agriculture, Brazil (Powerpoint slides)Economic and Social Regeneration: The role of co-operativesCo-operative Theory and Practice
Hilde Frafjord JOHNSON, Minister of International Development, NorwayCo-operatives as a tool for poverty reduction & enterprise developmentExcellencies, ICA delegates,Allow me first of all to quote one of the voices of the poor, from Jamaica: "Poverty is like living in jail, living under bondage, waiting to be free". The vision of what I want to say today is - to set people free, empowering people, giving them every opportunity to take care of themselves and their families. Is as simple, and as difficult, as that. I will come back to that, but first: It is an honor to address you on the occasion of the General Assembly, and a particular pleasure to welcome you to Oslo and Norway for this important event. Your work is significant and has long traditions in the interest of the common man. I hope you will feel at home in Norway, where the cooperative spirit has a proud history. Cooperatives have played key role in the economic and social development of Norway - both in agriculture and manufacturing, and among producers as well as consumers. "The cooperative organization is something of the best and noblest that has arisen in our time", Leo Tolstoy said in 1909. The cooperative movement has been and continues to be important for the common man - and woman. Cooperatives have proven to be a unique instrument to empower the consumer. The cooperative model has much to offer, in the developing as well as the developed part of the world. Not only have cooperatives contributed significantly to economic development, they have also been instrumental in promoting democracy and good government and governance. Norway has, over the past 100 years, been a prime example of this - and one I am sure you will hear much about over the course of your stay here. We are proud of our cooperative and democratic traditions, and grateful for the contributions of the cooperative movement in creating a society where the common man's voice is heard and heeded. But what about the common man's voice in the developing world? I believe that cooperatives can play an important role in our common efforts to fight poverty and promote democracy. In an increasingly globalized world, I believe that cooperative organizations are more needed than ever, as a balance to corporate power and as an anchor to the grassroots level of society. Cooperatives hold the potential of being a driving force in our partner countries in the developing world, provided they can operate in a truly democratic environment. For the poor around the world, cooperatives can provide a much needed opportunity for self-determination and empowerment. And we need opportunities like this in order to reach our goal of lifting millions out of poverty. Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) At the Millennium Summit in 2000, world leaders committed themselves to what we call the Millennium Development Goals, the MDGs, to fight poverty. A road map was laid out. In Monterrey, Mexico, and again in Johannesburg last year, we agreed not only on the goals, but on how to reach them. A major effort to fight world poverty is on its way. This is a commitment we have not seen before. Yes, there have been numerous efforts from many organizations and governments and important people to improve the lot of the poorest, but actually - as a collective world community we never really tried to lift the world's poor out of poverty. Mark M. Brown, Administrator of the UNDP, is right in pointing this out. But change is under way. Never before have we seen such a concrete and committed effort from all major world leaders. We have, in effect, a global compact between developing and developed countries. We agreed, - for the first time - to monitor progress. The MDGs have placed the interest of the poor and underprivileged at the top of the international agenda. Heads of state, including the G8 leaders, cite them frequently, and agree that poverty is the greatest scourge of our time. They promise to combat poverty by co-operation, by financial assistance, by implementing policies which are coherent, consistent - and caring. This, I believe, is a major breakthrough in international politics. Now we need to see follow-up. The goals are ambitious. We have committed ourselves to halve the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by 2015. We are committed to reducing child mortality by 2/3 and to achieve universal primary education. We are committed to promoting gender equality and empower women. Poverty and environmental degradation is a most dangerous mixture - we have committed ourselves to ensure environmental sustainability. We have committed ourselves to combat HIV/AIDS and malaria. The main responsibility lies with the countries themselves. They have to improve their performance and policies in all these areas (MDG 1 - 7). But this cannot happen without us, the rich countries. In the 8th Millennium Development Goal, the rich part of the world has committed itself to do what is necessary in a global partnership to eradicate poverty. We have committed ourselves to change policies, to develop a more open trade and investment system. We have committed ourselves to deal comprehensively with developing countries' debt problems, and to provide access to affordable essential drugs. We have committed ourselves to increase development assistance. There is much to do - and not much time. Our policies & enterprise development The fight against poverty is the main challenge for international development - and the main target for Norwegian cooperation with developing countries. A key component of any successful solution to poverty problems is enterprise development. This is an area where cooperatives have a very important role to play. I have already mentioned our own national experience in nation building here in Norway, in fields such as farmers' cooperative marketing, grocery sales, savings banks and consumers' unions. I have no doubt that, given the right set of circumstances, cooperatives can play a similarly successful role in poverty reduction in developing countries. This has been confirmed by good news from around the world. Let me highlight a few examples showing the positive change we are looking for: Women in Bangladesh: A woman named Karima brought together other landless women in her village in southern Bangladesh to save money to buy medicines in case of emergencies. They persuaded the village teacher to teach them to read and keep basic accounts. Membership grew rapidly. They pooled their money, rented a small piece of land and decided to grow potatoes and sugar cane. Eventually the women began supplying vegetables to local markets. News of their progress spread from village to village and in less than two years over a thousand landless women had formed thirty cooperative organizations. Some of these organizations now run their own schools for teaching health, nutrition and better farming methods. Then to India, a neighboring country: Milk Cooperatives in India: A White Revolution: The home of the Green Revolution, India, is now also home to a white revolution: Milk cooperatives. In these cooperatives, 6.3 million producer members, 60% of them landless or marginal farmers, are able to make a decent living. In 1994, this translated into extra national income of USD 7.5 billion, money that benefited the poor. The effects of a successful cooperative are widespread, and do not stop at the door of the farmer. However, the Indian experience has taught us much about the difference between a successful coop and an unsuccessful one. These are the lessons:
Then to Africa: Smallholders in Malawi and Ethiopia: Since 1995, the Smallholder Agribusiness Development Project has assisted small-scale producers in Malawi to strengthen their business and marketing skills, and increase production. The result has been successful agricultural development and diversification, higher income for the participants and the establishment of the National Smallholder Farmers' Association of Malawi. Ethiopia: Since 1997 ICA has been working to empower smallholder farmers in Ethiopia through forming competitive, profit oriented and professionally managed cooperatives. Advice on marketing and business management, bidding processes, procedural issues, accounting and record keeping has so far resulted in savings of almost USD 4 million. This is significant, and makes it possible for the poor to compete in an increasingly commercialized and business minded environment. Problems regarding coopeatives in developing countries However, there are also stories of unsuccessful cooperatives that need to be presented and paid attention to. Development expert Robert Chalmers in his research recently found Third World cooperatives to be inefficient and captured by local elites, excluding smaller farmers, poor people and women. He found that many cooperatives in developing countries suffered from poor repayment records, often failed to pay their members, and often had a high turnover of staff and funds - both of which tended to disappear quickly. I have witnessed this myself in connection with my own fieldwork as an anthropologist in Tanzania in the 1980s. Still, as ICA's Bruce Thordarson predicted back in 1991, a look around the world shows a clear link between democratic pluralism and cooperative success. It may thus be that cooperatives in Africa will have to await large scale government changes before they are able to benefit fully from the collaborative approaches which have worked so well in cooperatives in other parts of the world. With the impressive legal, financial, trade and organizational reforms taking place in many African countries today, perhaps the time has come to revitalize the work of establishing viable cooperative societies. Through The Royal Norwegian Society for Development, RNSD, (Selskapet for Norges Vel) Norway supports the MEMCOOP project, started jointly with Co-operative College of Moshi in Tanzania in 1996. It has established independent and economically sustainable grassroots organizations, contributing to improved livelihood for a large number of people in many different communities. Based on the promising results of this initial project, the Ministry of Finance in Tanzania has requested support for a significant program that seeks to develop a new cooperative movement in Tanzania. The program intends to cover 2000 primary cooperatives and groups in 60 districts on the Tanzania mainland. Furthermore, regionally: The Business Experience Exchange Programme (BEEP) - BEEP is a new initiative involving cooperatives in Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi and Uganda. The project aims at bringing together cooperatives and farmers organizations in these four countries to improve production methods, cost reduction, marketing and trade. Many of the products from these farmers are of a high quality, such as (haricots verts) green beans and baby corn. We would highly recommend that ICA consider importing these and other high quality products from Africa and other Least Developed Countries. Fair trade should be a trademark of Norwegian cooperative societies. Norwegian development assistance has for many years focused on organizing and training local producer groups. Our objective is to help create economically viable and self sustaining commercial enterprises, enterprises where members earn more money, improve their lives and exert positive social, political and economic influence. Much of our support to the organizational and competence building needs of farmers' groups has been channeled through the Norwegian cooperative movement's partnerships with like-minded partners in various developing countries and in cooperation with ICA. Economic development for small farmers and entrepreneurs has included organizing themselves and their activities - pooling resources, taking advantage of the benefits gained from large scale operations, in fields such as logistics, marketing, finance, sales and agricultural processing. Many cooperative organizations suffer, unfortunately, under political constraints. State intrusion and monopoly situations can severely limit the options available to the members. In such situations, our challenge is to develop cooperatives into flexible, dynamic and competitive actors in the market. They must be able to compete on an equal footing with other market operators, taking advantage of new markets locally, regionally and globally, continuously improving the quality of their products. There must also be a gradual formalization of rights in order to ensure sustainability and an expanded planning horizon. The United Nations' Millennium Goals, promising to cut by half the number of people living in extreme poverty and hunger by the year 2015, cannot be attained without a concerted effort to enhance civil society participation and decision making. This will require strengthened management skills, transparency and accountability in public and private sectors alike. Faith in government, democratic principles and the development process can only be upheld if corruption and graft can be defeated. The UN WEHAB framework on water, health, energy, agriculture and biodiversity also specifically calls for - in the agricultural area - the promotion of associations, organizations and private-public partnerships that can promote production, processing and marketing in developing countries. It is impossible to bring about real progress in the fight against poverty without the poor themselves being able to influence issues of policy and productivity through united and fortified efforts. It is impossible without empowering the poor. Cooperatives have demonstrated that this is possible. Given a political environment that encourages and enables, but does not interfere with, the organization of democratic and business minded producer and consumer groups. The values of the cooperatives are easily recognized in Norway's multilateral foreign policy. In organizations like ILO, Norway is active in promoting cooperation across traditional interest groups, and I want to honor the work done by my good friend Juan Somavia in this regard. By facilitating dialogue among the social partners, the so called social dialogue, we enhance the common good. The result is not only greater productivity, but also strengthened democracy. Because we have learned from our own experience of the value of cooperatives in improving Norwegian lives and livelihoods, I can assure you that Norway will continue to do her share bilaterally and multilaterally to promote cooperatives as an effective tool in international efforts to reduce and eventually to eliminate world poverty. This is a value-choice for us. Kofi Annan has said: "The main losers in today's very unequal world are not those who are too much exposed to globalization. They are those who have been left out." Being left out is the worst fate. And this large number of people, those who have been left out, deserve our attention and our action. The MDGs have provided us with a roadmap. World leaders have focused their attention on four areas where we need major changes - now. I call them "the four fronts": Cooperatives have a role to play along all those four fronts. This regards reform of international framework conditions. Easier access to markets and sustainable debt reduction will go a long way in alleviating the problems of the poor countries. Markets are also crucial for cooperatives. This regards good governance - the second front. Cooperatives may play important roles in getting governments right and improving democratic governance. This regards more and better donor assistance - crucial, and the third front. For the very poorest countries, direct aid is still crucial. Cooperatives in the very poorest countries are often dependent on assistance from outside. yet, they can be very efficient users of such assistance. And last, but certainly not least: This regards engaging the private sector and grassroots organizations in the work of achieving the MDGs. Governments cannot do this alone - we need help from you and others in the field. Here, cooperatives are important partners, as enterprises and grassroots mobilizers. I believe that cooperative organizations can have substantial impact on all these four fronts - as promoters of fairer policies domestically and internationally, as counterweights to the multinational business network, and as outlets for the voices of those whose voice would otherwise not be heard. Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese opposition leader, has said: "People feel that they are weak. And we have to make them understand that they are not weak! They can contribute to change!" Globalization has made an impact, positive or negative, in virtually every corner of the world today. The voices of the poor can often disappear in the chorus of commerce. I believe that organizations like yours, the cooperative movement, have a unique role to play in empowering people on the grassroots level. I commend you on all that has been achieved so far, and I encourage you to join in our truly cooperative efforts to fight poverty and create a better world - at least by 2015, if not sooner. Thank you. |
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Last Updated: 4 November 2004
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