A 15-member Brazilian Agricultural Delegation, led by Mr. Luis Alberto, President of Sistema OCB/Go, and Mr. Rajnish Magan, visited the National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI) on 14th February 2025. The visit aimed to gain deeper insights into India’s agricultural cooperative sector, fostering international cooperation and exploring collaborative opportunities between India and Brazil in cooperative-driven agriculture.
Upon their arrival at the NCUI headquarters in New Delhi, the delegation was warmly welcomed by senior NCUI officials. The meeting took place in the NCUI Board Room, where both sides engaged in detailed discussions covering a wide range of topics, including cooperative governance, sustainable farming techniques, financial inclusion of farmers, digital innovations in agriculture, and policy frameworks supporting the cooperative movement. The interaction provided a platform for exchanging ideas and learning from each other’s experiences, with a shared vision of strengthening cooperative agriculture in both countries.
Savitri Singh, Deputy Chief Executive of NCUI, emphasized the historical and strategic partnership between India and Brazil in the cooperative sector. She highlighted that both nations share a strong commitment to cooperative-driven agricultural growth, making this knowledge-sharing exchange highly valuable. She also underscored the importance of continued collaboration to enhance cooperative institutions, ensuring that farmers and rural communities benefit from improved agricultural practices and financial stability.
Dr. Sudhir Mahajan, Chief Executive of NCUI, elaborated on India’s well-established cooperative legacy, detailing how cooperative institutions have played a crucial role in empowering farmers, fostering agribusiness, ensuring food security, and promoting rural development. He pointed out that cooperatives have significantly contributed to uplifting small and marginal farmers by providing them with access to credit, technology, and markets, ultimately improving their livelihoods.
He further stressed that global partnerships are essential for driving sustainable and inclusive agricultural growth, as knowledge-sharing between nations can lead to innovative solutions for agricultural challenges such as climate change, resource management, and global market integration.
The exchange of insights was a two-way process, as the Brazilian delegation provided valuable perspectives on Brazil’s cooperative structure, financial mechanisms, and technological interventions in agriculture. These discussions allowed both sides to identify similarities and potential areas for future collaboration.
Key focus areas included joint training programs and capacity-building initiatives to strengthen cooperative leadership, technology-sharing agreements to integrate digital solutions into cooperative farming, bilateral research projects aimed at promoting sustainable and climate-resilient agricultural practices, and trade and market linkages to improve access to cooperative-produced agricultural goods.
The visit marked an important step in enhancing Indo-Brazilian cooperation in the cooperative sector. Strengthening these ties will enable both nations to leverage cooperative networks to drive agricultural innovation, enhance food security, and support socio-economic development.
As discussions concluded, the Brazilian delegation expressed strong interest in expanding their engagement with NCUI and exploring long-term collaborations. The visit laid the foundation for future exchanges and partnerships, ensuring that cooperative institutions in both countries continue to thrive as key pillars of rural empowerment and sustainable agricultural progress.
