SDG series – Cooperative contributions to SDG 17 – Partnerships for the Goals

Cooperatives are vital actors in building the partnerships needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. In this new edition of the Building a Better World Together: Cooperative Contributions to the SDGs series — focused on SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals) — the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), COPAC, and ICA’s regional offices showcase how cooperatives link global goals with local action, offering people-centred alternatives to traditional development models.

Partnerships for the Goals: Bridging Gaps in a Changing World

SDG 17 calls for stronger international cooperation, more inclusive partnerships, and greater coherence between public, private and civil society efforts. But global trends tell a worrying story.

• Official Development Assistance (ODA) fell by 7.1% in 2024, despite growing needs.

• SDG-aligned investments dropped by 11%, even as global FDI hit $1.4 trillion.

• Debt repayments in low and middle-income countries reached $1.4 trillion — outpacing remittances.

The gap between development ambition and reality continues to grow. Cooperatives, rooted in solidarity and democratic ownership, are positioned to help fill this gap — by building trust, fostering local resilience, and connecting communities to national and global frameworks.

The Cooperative Model: An Engine for Inclusive Partnerships

With more than 3 million cooperatives serving over 1 billion people, cooperatives are well placed to support SDG 17. Their strengths include:

• Community ownership and democratic governance

• Experience in building partnerships across public, private and civil society sectors

• Strong networks that operate from local to global levels

• Ability to link service delivery with long-term development impact

The brief highlights the cooperative model as an essential actor in financing for development, policy coherence, capacity-building, and cross-sector collaboration.

Global Examples: European Action in Focus

Across Europe and its partner regions, cooperatives are supporting SDG 17 through impactful partnerships, solidarity action, and long-term investment.

Türkiye

Under the EU-funded IPARD programme, rural cooperatives are improving agri-food competitiveness. Women-led cooperatives in the Eastern Black Sea region developed e-commerce platforms and secured geographical indication certifications with support from UN agencies. In parallel, energy cooperatives are working with municipalities to expand local solar power.

Armenia

Farm Credit Armenia secured a €2.5 million loan from EIB Global to support youth and women entrepreneurs. The partnership contributes to the EU’s Economic and Investment Plan for the Eastern Partnership, demonstrating how cooperative finance can unlock inclusive growth.

Portugal and Lusophone countries

CASES (Cooperativa António Sérgio for the Social Economy), as president of the Portuguese-speaking cooperatives network (OCPLP), is fostering South-South and triangular cooperation with 31 cooperative federations. Through shared training platforms and bilateral partnerships, CASES supports peer learning and capacity-building in Lusophone countries.

Italy

The Italian cooperative movement launched two solidarity initiatives in the Gaza Strip.

• Under the #CoopforGaza campaign, Ancc-Coop and Banca Etica mobilised €500,000 and coordinated fundraising to support Médecins Sans Frontières.

• In parallel, Legacoop and Halieus partnered with WeWorld-GVC and the Swedish Akelius Foundation to organise summer camps for children affected by the conflict.

Italy & Colombia

The CO.LO.RES project — coordinated by Coopermondo and COSPE with funding from the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation — brought together cooperatives from Emilia-Romagna (Italy) and regions of Colombia. The exchanges focused on participatory governance, women’s leadership, and solidarity economy practices in agriculture, crafts, and finance.

Sweden

We Effect, together with housing cooperatives HSB and Riksbyggen, launched Sustainable Housing – A Right for All. This programme supports cooperative housing development in East Africa and Latin America while creating international partnerships and business opportunities for Swedish cooperative actors.

Barriers: Why Cooperatives Are Still Overlooked

Despite their strengths, cooperatives remain underrepresented in international development strategies. The brief identifies four main challenges:

• Legal barriers: Many cooperatives operate under outdated or restrictive laws

• Limited access to finance: Development finance often fails to reach cooperative enterprises

• Lack of visibility: Cooperatives are often absent from SDG reporting and national statistics

• Misconceptions: Top-down “pseudo cooperatives” can damage credibility and trust

These gaps prevent cooperatives from scaling up their impact and participating fully in multi-stakeholder partnerships.

What Needs to Change

The policy brief outlines key recommendations to scale cooperative contributions to SDG 17:

• Update laws and frameworks to reflect the specific nature of cooperatives

• Include cooperatives in Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) and SDG reporting

• Develop financing tools tailored to cooperative governance

• Invest in leadership, capacity and digital infrastructure

• Engage cooperatives in global fora such as the G7, G20, COPs, and the 2025 World Social Summit

A Call to Action

The International Year of Cooperatives (IYC 2025) is a key moment to strengthen the role of cooperatives in global partnerships. European cooperatives are already contributing — not only through technical expertise or finance, but through solidarity, community resilience, and democratic innovation.

Cooperatives Europe is committed to working with our members, the European Commission, and global partners to ensure that cooperatives are fully recognised and supported as key actors in international development cooperation.

📄 Download the full policy brief here
🔗 Visit the COPAC website

This article has been co-funded by the European Union. The contents of this article are the sole responsibility of Cooperatives Europe and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.