Strategic Intervention Area 6: Inclusive Approaches And Greening Of The CO-operative Movement

A deteriorating natural environment has adverse effects on the socio-economic progress of not only farming households but the entire human race. Co-operatives, however, are a good vehicle to support efforts aimed at reversing climate change and also supporting adaptation to its effects, on especially organized smallholder farmers, in an inclusive manner for purposes of sustainability. NAAC has a strong interest in this key area because it directly impact its members’ existence, and it constantly engages various stakeholders to develop interventions to support climate change mitigation measures. In addition, NAAC is also cognizant of the various types of marginalized categories of people who are often excluded from rural development interventions, which creates systemic income and livelihood imbalances within the citizenry, for example the women, youth, PWDs, refugees. This, therefore, is also a key focus area for the NAAC, in its programming.

Strategic Objective: An inclusive and environmentally sustainable co-operative movement

Strategic Actions

• 1. Developing/Collection/Profiling of practical agricultural climate change mitigation training materials or innovations.
• 2. Popularizing climate change materials and messaging among members.
• 3. Development of climate change strategies/action plans amongst cooperatives.
• 4. Facilitating cooperatives to adopt climate smart agricultural practices and technologies.
• 5. Partnering with government and other stakeholders to support efforts of climate change mitigation, sustainable environmental utilization, climate-smart technologies, etc.
• 6. Lobby government to enforce climate protection policies.
• 7. Mobilize and support member co-operatives to actively contribute to carbon saving in order to save the climate.
• 8. To collaborate with other market actors to promote responsible production and consumption so that naturals resources are sustainably utilized.

Strategic Objective:

Agricultural co-operatives that are inclusive in their operations and approaches;

• 1. Development of women and youth strategy for NAAC and her members.
• 2. Partnering with other actors to develop innovative business models that lead to inclusion of women, youth and other marginalized persons in co-operatives.
• 3. Mobilize resources to support agricultural co-operatives in becoming proactively inclusive.
• 4. Develop and participate in policy and advocacy campaigns aimed at making the sector development priorities and initiatives inclusive.