Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic strengthen their capacity to promote new cooperative enterprises

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San José, COSTA RICA (ILO News) - Trainers from Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic have completed their certification in the International Labour Organization's (ILO) Think.COOP and Start.COOP methodologies. These tools are designed to support individuals and groups interested in learning about the cooperative model and establishing new cooperatives.

The certification represents an important step towards expanding cooperative education in both countries and making practical tools available to communities, organisations and entrepreneurs. The certified teams will be able to help them assess whether a cooperative meets their needs and, subsequently, plan organisations that are socially, economically and organisationally viable.

The process, which took place over approximately one year, involved Costa Rica's National Learning Institute (INA), Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MTSS) and National Institute for Cooperative Development (INFOCOOP), as well as the Dominican Republic's National Institute for Technical and Vocational Training (INFOTEP) and Dominican Council for Fisheries and Aquaculture (CODOPESCA).

During the virtual certification event, the institutions shared the results of the process, their experiences in training end users and their plans for incorporating the methodologies into their services.

"Today, we mark the completion of the ILO certification process for these teams. At the same time, we are beginning a new phase in which Think.COOP and Start.COOP will be applied in an institutionalised, organised and sustainable manner through the services that these institutions provide to the public," said Leonardo Ferreira, Deputy Director of the ILO Office for Central America, Panama and the Dominican Republic.

Ferreira noted that the purpose of this work is to enable more people to understand the advantages and characteristics of cooperative enterprises and to provide them with the tools to create initiatives capable of generating better incomes, employment opportunities and working conditions.

Edgar Oviedo Blanco, Executive President of the INA, emphasised that these tools "provide us with new capacities to strengthen the vocational and technical education and training services offered by the INA. This initiative is aligned with our institutional vision and with the objectives set out in our strategic plan."

Maira Morla Pineda, Director General of INFOTEP, stressed that "this event represents far more than the completion of a training process. It marks the consolidation of a strategic partnership between INFOTEP and the ILO to incorporate international methodologies that will strengthen our training and business advisory services."

Practical tools for establishing sustainable cooperatives

The Think.COOP methodology helps participants understand the principles, benefits and challenges of the cooperative model. Start.COOP supports interested groups as they take the first steps towards establishing a cooperative, from defining their idea to developing a basic business plan.

To date, the process implemented in the Dominican Republic and Costa Rica has resulted in the certification of 28 trainers, distributed as follows:

► Dominican Republic: 13 INFOTEP trainers, representing 100 per cent of those authorised by the institution, and six CODOPESCA trainers.

► Costa Rica: six INFOCOOP trainers and three INA trainers.

"This certification consolidates national capacities that are already being placed at the service of people and communities in both countries. The next step is to expand and sustain the implementation of Think.COOP and Start.COOP through the institutions themselves, strengthening their ability to support more individuals and groups in establishing and developing sustainable cooperatives with the potential to generate decent work opportunities and contribute to the productive development of their communities," said Rodrigo Mogrovejo, ILO Specialist in Sustainable Enterprises and Just Transition.

The certification of the national teams marks the beginning of a new phase: the gradual integration of these methodologies into the services offered by the participating institutions. This will ensure that the knowledge acquired remains within the countries, is shared more widely and reaches more people. The process aims to build lasting capacity within national institutions so that Think.COOP and Start.COOP can be progressively incorporated into their services and replicated across both countries.

The ILO recognised the commitment of its partner institutions and of those who completed the training. It also reiterated its readiness to continue supporting national efforts to promote sustainable cooperatives, strengthen the social and solidarity economy, and generate decent work opportunities.