The International Labour Organization (ILO) has highlighted the role of co-ops in driving inclusive growth, decent work, and local ownership in EU external action.
Carlien van Empel, director of the ILO Office for the EU and the Benelux countries, made her comments at a panel discussion, where she called for deeper integration of co-operatives into the EU’s Global Gateway strategy.
The event, From aid to ownership: rethinking development through a cooperative lens was organised by Cooperatives Europe in the framework of a partnership between the EU and the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA).
A panel discussion on the future of people-centred businesses in the EU External Action Agenda brought together perspectives from the ILO, Enabel – the Belgian development agency – the European Commission and Concord Europe.
“Co-operatives can help ensure that investment generates decent work and benefits that are locally anchored and sustained over time,” said van Empel. “Across sectors such as energy, transport, digital services, agriculture, care and finance, they can participate as enterprises, suppliers, service providers, financial institutions and community partners.”
She went on to outline ways in which the ILO’s work on co-operatives and the social and solidarity economy (SSE) can reinforce EU external action priorities.
Van Empel pointed to the ILO’s normative framework, which includes the Recommendation on the Promotion of Cooperatives (2002), which was complemented in 2022 when ILO constituents adopted a Resolution on decent work and the social and solidarity economy.
The recommendation has informed co-operative policy and legislation in 120 countrie, and has informed the wider multilateral agenda on SSE, including at the level of the UN General Assembly.
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“As highlighted by the universal definition,” said van Empel, “a strong social and solidarity economy can contribute to inclusive, resilient and sustainable economies and societies, and support decent work, productive employment and improved living standards for all.”
She also highlighted the ILO’s ability to help develop stronger national ecosystems. Beyond SSE legislation, countries need appropriate policies, capable institutions, social dialogue, and safeguards to protect the autonomy of cooperatives, which are independent economic actors, and should not be created for the purpose of international cooperation nor be used as international cooperation delivery mechanisms.
Van Empel tested several successful practical applications. In Tunisia, the EU-funded Jeun’ess project supported over 170 SSE entities, contributing to more than 3,600 decent jobs. In the care economy, the ILO promotes co-operative models to help formalise domestic workers and caregivers in Colombia, Palestine, and Zimbabwe. In Burkina Faso, Mali, and Uganda, ILO initiatives engage co-operatives to combat child and forced labour and improve occupational safety and health.
Looking ahead, van Empel stressed the potential for co-operatives within the EU’s Global Gateway Strategy. Through joint methodologies like employment impact assessments and programmes in Liberia, Bangladesh, and across Africa, the ILO works to ensure that large investments deliver quality jobs.
She invited the European Commission and development partners to explore more systematically how co-operatives and the wider SSE can contribute to Global Gateway investments, and how this potential can be unlocked.
