Coops key to building peace and stronger institutions, says new policy brief
BRUSSELS, June 5, 2026 — Cooperatives can play a critical role in promoting peace, justice and strong institutions at a time when global conflicts are increasing in scale and severity, according to a new policy brief released by the International Cooperative Alliance [ICA] and the Committee for the Promotion and Advancement of Cooperatives [COPAC].
The publication, released ahead of the 2026 International Day of Cooperatives [CoopsDay] and the ICA and Cooperatives of the Americas Global Conference in Panama, focuses on Sustainable Development Goal ([SDG16], which seeks to promote peaceful and inclusive societies, ensure access to justice and build effective, accountable institutions.
The report comes against a backdrop of worsening humanitarian crises worldwide. According to Humanitarian Action, part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs [OCHA], more than 239 million people were in urgent need of humanitarian assistance and protection at the beginning of 2026 due to protracted and increasingly violent conflicts.
“Conflict is the main cause of death, displacement and hunger,” the agency said.
The policy brief argues that cooperatives have long served as a counterforce to conflict by fostering democratic participation, social inclusion and economic cooperation.
Drawing on the 2025 Global Progress Report on SDG 16, the document warns that progress towards peace, justice and inclusion remains uneven and too slow to meet the targets set under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
“This moment calls for a deeper understanding of what ‘peace’ truly entails,” the policy brief states.
Citing peace scholar Johan Galtung, the report distinguishes between “negative peace” — the absence of violence — and “positive peace”, which encompasses justice, equality, cooperation and inclusion.
According to the brief, these social, economic and institutional foundations are essential for sustaining long-term stability.
The publication highlights examples from several countries, including Rwanda, where cooperatives have supported reconciliation, accountable governance and the protection of rights, and Ukraine, where the Molochna Rika cooperative has continued operating despite market disruptions and the impacts of war.
The cooperative movement has increasingly linked its work to peacebuilding over the past four decades. The brief traces this evolution from discussions at the 1984 ICA Congress in Hamburg through subsequent meetings in Stockholm and Tokyo, culminating in the 2019 ICA Kigali Declaration on Positive Peace.
That declaration recognised cooperatives as contributors not only to preventing conflict but also to advancing justice, inclusion and trust — key pillars of peaceful and resilient societies.
The report says cooperatives help reduce the root causes of violence by strengthening solidarity, expanding participation, promoting transparency and supporting accountable institutions.
By doing so, it adds, cooperatives contribute directly to achieving SDG 16 and creating more peaceful, just and inclusive communities.
The publication was produced under the ICA-EU Partnership [2024–2028], also known as #coops4dev, a five-year international cooperative development programme co-funded by the European Union to strengthen the global cooperative movement and promote cooperatives as key actors in international development.
https://thecooperator.news/uganda-postpones-2026-coops-day-celebrations-over-ebola-outbreak/
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