The Chilean government has developed a document in partnership with the International Labour Organization (ILO), aimed at strengthening co-operativism in rural areas of the country.
Last week, Chile’s Division of Associativity and Cooperatives (Daes), the National Institute of Associativity and Cooperativism (Inac-Corfo), and the ILO launched their Proposed Roadmap to Promote Associativity and Rural Formalization through Cooperativism in Chile.
Chile’s 571 rural co-ops make up 57% of the country’s co-op economy, but they are highly fragmented, says the roadmap. Just over half of Chile’s rural co-ops have fewer than 20 members, and limited resources, while urban co-ops account for 68.7% of workers and almost 95% of the country’s co-ops members.
At the same time, large co-ops, which make up just 1.9% of Chile’s co-ops, whether urban or rural, account for almost 80% of sales.
The proposed roadmap seeks to promote rural co-ops as a way of formalising the economy and providing decent work for people, with solutions based around three strategic pillars: productive development and co-operative business model; organisational, business, and governance strengthening; and development of the co-operative ecosystem and its social impact.
Suggested interventions include initiatives to promote trade networks between territories, strategic partnerships with local institutions, and training and education programmes.
At the launch event, Gerson Martínez, officer-in-charge of the ILO Office for the Southern Cone of Latin America, said: “The roadmap we are presenting today is a strategic tool that integrates public policy, territorial evidence, international standards, and practical methodologies.
“It aligns with the ILO’s Strategy for Formalization in Latin America and the Caribbean (Forlac 2.0) and proposes concrete interventions across three key areas: productive development, organisational strengthening, and consolidation of the co-operative ecosystem.”
The roadmap suggests that its implementation be led by Daes and Inac, via decentralised working groups involving the state, workers, and co-operative organisations.
Juan José Montes, head of Daes, said that the proposed roadmap “marks a significant milestone in a tripartite alliance to strengthen co-operatives in both their daily and long-term needs.”
Cristóbal Navarro Marshall, executive director of Inac, added: “This roadmap represents a tremendous opportunity to enhance co-operativism through coordination between the Chilean public sector and international organizations. It will serve as a tool to promote associativity and improve working conditions in the rural economy through cooperativism.
“At Inac, we take on the responsibility of building consensus around it with various stakeholders to facilitate its implementation.”
