Cooperative Development
SOCODEVI contributes to improving the living conditions of communities by helping to create and strengthen sustainable and inclusive cooperative and mutual enterprises. SOCODEVI leverages its PerformCoop Approach, PerformCoop change management tool and crack team of consultants to help collective enterprises become autonomous, profitable, sustainable and inclusive.
There’s no better way to strengthen both cooperatives and mutuals than by harnessing the powerful synergy between them. SOCODEVI’s network is made up of some of the biggest businesses and institutions in Quebec’s cooperative and mutualist movement, including Agropur, Sollio Groupe Coopératif, Beneva (SSQ – La Capitale), Promutuel Insurance, and cooperative federations covering sectors such as food, forestry and housing.
The sixth cooperative principle, cooperation among cooperatives, is what binds SOCODEVI’s network of members to the members of the cooperatives and mutuals it supports worldwide. SOCODEVI has been leveraging its network every year since 1985 to carry out exciting projects. In total, SOCODEVI and its network have supported more than 500 projects around the globe and provided assistance to over 1,000 partner organizations.
SOCODEVI’s network is made up of some of the biggest businesses and institutions in Quebec’s cooperative and mutualist movement, including Agropur, Sollio Cooperative Group, Beneva (SSQ – La Capitale), Promutuel Insurance, and cooperative federations covering sectors such as food, forestry and housing.
Testimonial
“Thanks to the training I received, I know how a bee colony works and the vital role it plays in a cashew plantation. Today, I am proud to raise bees. It allows me to increase my production while protecting the environment and gives me another source of income via honey and wax sales at my cooperative.”
Yéo Tiahoua, member of UCONAKO cooperative
Côte d'Ivoire
DID YOU KNOW THAT…?
Cooperatives also increase member resilience in countries in which SOCODEVI operates? A SOCODEVI study funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) found that the members of well-established agricultural cooperatives were less likely to experience COVID-19-related food insecurity and economic instability than the members of low-activity or inactive cooperatives.
The cooperative model is an intrinsic source of resilience? A Quebec CQCM study showed that cooperatives were much more resilient than shareholding companies both in the short term and long term.
Testimonial
“The Ben Tre Green Pomelo cooperative [developed and supported by SOCODEVI in Vietnam] is a model that we would like to replicate [in Vietnam]; not only is it active in production to make sure that its members produce goods that are up to the quality standards of the markets, but it is also proactive in market expansion. Its focus on a circular economy also helps guarantee a production process that minimizes environmental pollution.”
Tran Thanh Nam, Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in 2021
Vietnam
