Our history

The National Association of Cooperatives of Family Agriculture and Solidarity Economy (Unicafes) was founded in June 2005, in Luziânia, Goiás state, Brazil. Unicafes' objectives is to represent the interests of solidarity economy cooperatives, involving family farmers, local communities, land reform settlements, among others, towards sustainable development to its associates.

Unicafes is registered in Brazil as a non-profit organization that promotes social and economic inclusion of its associates, through rural development, income generation, food production, livelihood, life quality, biodiversity preservation, and decrease of social and economic inequalities.

The associated cooperatives are distributed in the whole country, with a total of 700 cooperatives divided in branches, such as: credit, production, work, commercialization, and infrastructure. Unicafes is also organized by state, distributed in 21 different states of Brazil: Paraná, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, Rio de Janeiro, Espírito Santo, Minas Gerais, Maranhão, Bahia, Pernambuco, Rio Grande do Norte, Alagoas, Ceará, Paraíba, Sergipe, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Goiás, Amazonas, Tocantins, Rondônia, and Pernambuco. 

Our strategy consists in offering specialized services based on the states' Unicafes that contribute to the local development, and ensure participatory process, including advocacy to better public policies and to the expansion of cooperativism and solidarity economy.  

Mission

To strengthen the solidarity economy cooperativism by representing the cooperatives of family agriculture interests, and by providing specialized services to reach sustainable development as a whole: social, economic, environmental, with gender, race, generation and ethnic equity.

Vision

To be a reference in the sector of solidarity economy cooperativism, with social inclusion and democracy.

Principles and values

• People in the center, democratic participation, solidarity, ethics, autonomy, plurality, gender, race, generation and ethnic equity.
• Network organization, solidarity economy, transparency, intercooperation, defense of life and of the environment.
• Inequality resilience, combating discrimination and defending rights.

Partners

In 19 years of existence, we have gathered multiple partners, such as national and international organizations and governments, among them: National Bank of Economic and Social Development (BNDES), Labour Ministry, Citizenship Ministry, Agriculture Ministry, National Service of Cooperatives’ Learning (SESCOOP), Conexus, National Confederation of Agriculture Workers (CONTAG), National Association of Solidarity Economy Cooperatives Organizations (Unicopas), Trias, European Union, Specialized Reunion of Family Agriculture of Mercosul (REAF), IICA/FAO, Agricord, etc.

International contact
relacoesinstitucionais@unicafes.org.br