About

The International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) is an independent, non-governmental organisation that unites, represents and serves Co-operatives worldwide. It exists to provide an effective and efficient global voice and forum for knowledge, expertise and Co-ordinated action for and about Co-operatives.

During the week of 1-5 November 2013, you are invited to attend the ICA’s global conference and General Assembly in Cape Town, South Africa. This will be the first time in ICA’s 118 year history that it will be held in Africa.

The programme will start with statutory meetings of ICA bodies and then move into the main conference. The theme of the conference is Co-operative Decade: Growing the Co-operative Movement. The exciting programme will be built around the Blueprint for a Co-operative Decade, which aims to take Co-operatives to a position of being the preferred model and as a result the fastest-growing form of enterprise by 2020. The Blueprint is available here: http://2012.coop/en/blueprint

Below is a summary of the programme:

  • Friday 1 November: statutory meetings
  • Saturday 2 November: statutory meetings, & youth conference
  • Sunday 3 November: full plenary followed by breakout sessions, and welcome reception with an auction to benefit the Endowment Fund for Africa
  • Monday 4 November: reports & debates from Sunday breakouts & ICA General Assembly
  • Tuesday 5 November: Breakout sessions and full plenary, followed by Celebration of Cooperation Dinner & Rochdale Pioneers Award                                                                                                                       

During the week there will also be a number of booths selling Co-operative books and goods, providing information about Co-operatives, showcases, and a number of other side meetings.