International Cooperative Alliance-Africa

29/07/2026

💭 What does it take to build a future-ready cooperative?

It starts with leaders who are willing to learn, collaborate, and innovate.

Today, cooperative leaders from across Africa gather in Addis Ababa for the Unleashing Innovation in Cooperatives Training Programme, where they'll explore practical approaches to solving real cooperative challenges through Design Thinking and Business Model Innovation.

We're excited to see the ideas, partnerships, and solutions that will emerge over the coming days.

28/07/2026

We're in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 🇪🇹, for the Regional Capacity Building Programme on Cooperative Lobbying, Advocacy and Strengthening the Cooperative Enabling Environment.

Over the next two days, participants will exchange experiences, strengthen their advocacy skills and explore practical approaches to engaging policymakers, influencing legislation and shaping policies that enable cooperatives to thrive.

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International Cooperative Alliance European Commission

24/07/2026

Congratulations to Zimbabwe on the launch of its National Cooperative Societies Development Policy!🇿🇼

The launch, officiated by His Excellency President Dr Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa during the inaugural National MSMEs and Cooperatives Indaba, reflects Zimbabwe's commitment to empowering cooperatives as drivers of inclusive economic growth, innovation, value addition and sustainable development.

ICA-Africa was honoured to witness this milestone through the participation of our Regional President, Mr. Macloud Malonza, and Regional Director, Dr. Rose Karimi, reaffirming our shared commitment to advancing the cooperative movement across the continent.

As the continental voice of cooperatives and a key partner in the development of the African Union Pan African Parliament Model Law on Cooperatives, ICA-Africa continues to advocate for enabling legal and policy frameworks that recognize the unique identity, values and potential of cooperatives.

17/07/2026

How can worker cooperatives drive decent youth employment across Africa?

Join Cooperation Africa and ICA-Africa for the International Hybrid Conference on Worker Cooperatives and Decent Youth Employment in Africa where we'll explore policy solutions & strengthen collaboration for inclusive employment opportunities for African youth.

📅 24–26 August 2026
📍 Lusaka, Zambia & Online

🔗Register here: https://cooperationafrica.org/events/6d7cbf63-9dbe-4304-b407-0964114f04d0

14/07/2026

Join us this Thursday for the Youth and Women Cooperatives Forum!

Together with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa (RNE) and the International Co-operative Alliance-Asia and Pacific, we'll explore how cooperative action is empowering youth and women to lead inclusive agrifood systems transformation across the NENA region.

📅 16 July 2026
🕚 11:00 AM–3:00 PM (Cairo Time)
💻 Virtual

🔗 Register: https://lnkd.in/dNNCDsvJ

10/07/2026

A new milestone for gender equality in African !

Senegal has officially launched its National Cooperative Gender Platform (NCGP), becoming the second country in Africa to establish this national mechanism for advancing gender equality within the cooperative movement.

The launch took place during the FORA'ESS and was attended by distinguished guests, including Hon. Yolanda Díaz, Minister of Labour and Social Economy and Vice-President of the Government of Spain; Hon. Achille BASSILEKIN III, Minister of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, Social Economy and Handicrafts of Cameroon; and Ms. Samira Daoud, Director of the ILO Decent Work Technical Support Team for West Africa and Country Office for Senegal, Cabo Verde, The Gambia and Guinea.

The event also brought together women leaders from across the continent, who received the NCGP framework to guide the establishment of National Cooperative Gender Platforms in their countries, including Togo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Gabon, Cabo Verde, Mali and Chad.

As part of this important milestone, ICA-Africa signed an MoU with the FODEM - Fonds de Développement et de solidarité Municipal(FODEM), strengthening collaboration to promote gender-responsive cooperative development and advance women’s empowerment across Senegal as the anchor of the platform.

With more countries preparing to establish their platforms, we look forward to seeing this initiative expand across the continent, creating greater opportunities for women to lead and thrive in cooperatives.

🔗Read all about it: https://icaafrica.coop/en/newsroom/news/senegal-launches-national-cooperative-gender-platform-marking-new-milestone-gender

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International Labour Organization Norges Vel We Effect East Africa We Effect International Cooperative Alliance
International Co-operative Alliance-Asia and Pacific Cooperatives Europe COOP Américas

08/07/2026

Our Regional Director, Dr. Rose Karimi, joined fellow leaders and development partners during a high-level plenary at the Second Edition of the African Forum on the Social and Solidarity Economy (FORA'ESS Dakar 2026).

The discussion explored financing and support mechanisms for Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) actors in light of the UN Resolution on SSE and the African Decade Strategy for the Social and Solidarity Economy.

Representing the movement, she noted that the SSE has evolved from the margins to the mainstream of Africa's development agenda, reflecting its growing contribution to inclusive growth, decent work, and sustainable development across the continent.

She called for stronger partnerships, greater investment in member-owned enterprises, and enabling policy environments that allow cooperatives and other SSE actors to scale their impact and contribute to inclusive economic transformation across Africa.

07/07/2026

🌍What does China's expanded Zero-Tariff Policy mean for African cooperatives?

It means new opportunities to access one of the world's largest markets, strengthen value addition and build lasting Cooperative-to-Cooperative (C2C) trade partnerships.

ICA-Africa members had the opportunity to engage directly with the All-China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives (ACFSMC), the apex organization representing the largest cooperative network in China, to explore how African cooperatives can tap into these emerging opportunities.

The webinar provided a platform for our members to openly discuss the challenges their cooperatives face in accessing the Chinese market while identifying practical solutions around export readiness, financing, and logistics.

The conversation doesn't end here.

We look forward to turning these discussions into meaningful collaborations and building bridges that connect our cooperatives to new markets, stronger partnerships, and a more prosperous movement in Africa.

04/07/2026

Happy ! 🎉

Today, we celebrate the power of cooperatives in building a more just, inclusive, and peaceful world.

In his CoopsDay message, ICA-Africa President, Mr. Macloud Malonza reminds us that lasting peace is rooted in justice, solidarity, inclusion, and shared prosperity, the very values at the heart of the cooperative movement.

As we mark this year’s theme, “Cooperatives for a Peaceful World,” let us renew our commitment to cooperation as a pathway to peace and sustainable development.

Watch his CoopsDay message 👇

04/07/2026