ICA Youth Network selects nine youth led co-ops for funding

By Anca Voinea

The ICA Youth Network has selected nine youth led ventures to receive funding, mentorship and training from its Replication Project to develop co-operatives.

Launched in February, the Youth Replication Project aims to support both existing youth-led co-operatives and young people who wish to create a youth co-operative.

The winners will get a maximum of €10,000 each.

The project is funded by a donation from the International Summit of Cooperatives. The Youth Network received over 150 applications for the scheme, which were reviewed by members of the Youth Network Executive Committee and a representative from the International Summit of Cooperatives.

The panel of judges selected the following projects:

1. The Young Peoples’ Multipurpose Coop from Zimbabwe, to install solar panels in housing co-operatives

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2. The Enhancing Organic Food Cropping Cooperative (ENOFOCC) from Cameroon, to collect manure to create organic fertilisers

3. RedRoot from Philippines, an IT co-op, to create an event management tool for co-operatives

4. PerMaTa from Indonesia, to recycle waste – the project is led by young people affected by leprosy

5. Fashion Design from Guatemala, to design and sell fashion items using unique Mayan textiles

6. Revolusar from Brazil, to install solar panels in favelas

7. Fundacja Splot Spoleczny (FSS) from Poland, to tackle pollution and implement waste management solutions

8. The Guild from Turkey, to set up an interpreters’ worker co-operative

9. FACTTIC youth network from Argentina, to help two of their applicants:

The ICA Youth Network is now asking organisations or individual co-operators who can contribute additional funds or skills to help youth co-operatives develop. The network will be matching mentors’ skills to the selected projects. Information on the different types of mentors needed for each project is mentioned on each project’s webpage.

Impressed by the high quality of the applications received, the Youth Network would like to try to find additional funding to support some of the other inspiring projects pitched.

The network will be launching web pages for six additional projects:

1. AfriCo Online from South Africa – which runs a marketplace for co-operatives in South Africa

2. Brand K Communications Coop Technologies from Kenya – to support African community and co-operative businesses to be creative, self-sustaining and independent.

3. Upcycling SEWA from India, a sustainable fashion project

4. Coop & Go from Canada, to offer a range of services to homeowners, parents and local businesses, including babysitting, tutoring, yard work and grocery shopping

5. Mecha from Venezuela, to produce and develop animation videos

6. The Kitchen from Hungary, to build a kitchen in a co-operative house