NCBA CLUSA and USFWC partner to strengthen worker co-ops in Madagascar, Kenya, Guatemala and Peru

Members of two worker cooperatives in Madagascar, along with officials from the Ministry of Commerce and Trade, participate in a training led by NCBA CLUSA's Cooperative Development Program.

NCBA CLUSA and the U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives (USFWC) are pleased to announce a new partnership funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)'s Cooperative Development Program (CDP).

Through NCBA CLUSA's CDP project, Cooperative Ecosystem and Social Inclusion, USFWC will conduct worker cooperative sensitization and peer learning activities across Madagascar, Kenya, Guatemala and Peru to increase awareness of and interest in worker co-ops and strengthen the capacities of these countries' cooperative movements to advocate for the worker co-op model.

In collaboration with USFWC, NCBA CLUSA aims to raise awareness about the potential of worker co-ops to provide economic opportunities for marginalized groups such as women, youth and indigenous people as part of the CDP's broader strategy of promoting social inclusion in cooperatives and cooperative ecosystems.

USFWC is the national grassroots membership organization for worker cooperatives and democratic workplaces. They aim to build a thriving ecosystem for worker-owned and -controlled businesses to power movements for racial justice and economic democracy.

"The USFWC is proud to partner with NCBA CLUSA in this international effort to elevate the worker co-op model as a solution for the exclusion of marginalized groups from the benefits of the traditional economy," said Esteban Kelly, Executive Director of the USFWC. "As the only national membership organization of worker cooperatives in the U.S., we are uniquely positioned to harness the experience of worker-owners and shape that into expertise such that co-op members themselves are the driving force behind this collaboration to expand the reach of the model to those who need it most."

To kick off this collaboration, USFWC's Co-op Clinic Training Manager Maureen Darras met virtually with two worker cooperatives in Madagascar-Koperativa Ombina Natao Ifampitsinjovana (ONI) and Cooperative Oeuvrant dans le Development Communautaire (CODeC)-to learn more about their organizations and activities in preparation for the peer learning sessions slated for 2025. ONI and CODeC are unique businesses in Madagascar as few worker co-ops exist there. As sub-awardees on CESI, they provide coaching services to agricultural and dairy/livestock cooperatives. The peer learning sessions that USFWC is organizing for them are designed to help strengthen their operations and broaden their horizons about the possibilities of their businesses. U.S. worker cooperative members of USFWC will be able to learn from their Malagasy counterparts.

"Connecting worker-owners across borders to exchange strengths and insights is one of the ways we practice solidarity within the global cooperative movement." - Maureen Darras, Co-op Clinic Training Manager, USFWC

"Connecting worker-owners across borders to exchange strengths and insights is one of the ways we practice solidarity within the global cooperative movement," Darras said. "Our U.S.-based members will learn from Malagasy cooperatives ONI and CODeC, whose work in the agricultural industry offers valuable lessons for sectors where U.S. worker co-ops are still gaining ground. In turn, we'll share what we've learned about growing cooperative ecosystems and raising the visibility of worker-ownership, helping ONI and CODeC to support the popularization of this model in Madagascar."

CODeC President Finoana Rabesandratana said the co-op is "looking forward to continuing the exchange with USFWC to learn about the organization and functioning of worker cooperatives, like ours." ONI President Rado Ramiadamanana added, "the exchange we had with USFWC allowed us to understand a little bit about the cooperative workers' movement in the United States. We do not yet have a similar umbrella structure in Madagascar. We expect this exchange to help us better understand the structuring of the [worker] cooperative movement: its organization, functioning and conditions for sustainability."

In addition to these peer learning sessions with the two worker cooperatives in Madagascar, USFWC will meet in person with cooperatives and key cooperative stakeholders in Guatemala and Peru in July 2025. NCBA CLUSA will leverage its CDP-developed Co-op Business School for virtual programming across all four countries. Additional learning exchanges and technical assistance will be based on the outcomes of these activities.

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