Representatives from Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia, Peru, Tanzania and Uganda met in Brazil from 2 to 7 November 2025 to share experiences and develop practical solutions for advancing Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (FPRWs) in the coffee supply chain, with a particular focus on occupational safety and health (OSH).
The week-long South-South Cooperation (SSC) event, organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO) through its Vision Zero Fund, with co-funding from the European Union, and supported by the International Training Centre of the ILO (ITC ILO), brought together tripartite delegations representing governments, and employers' and workers' organizations. The event aimed to promote social dialogue and advance respect for workers' fundamental principles and rights at work across coffee-producing countries. The meeting had a particular focus on promoting the right to a safe and healthy working environment.
© OIT
Building shared solutions through dialogue and cooperation
Through interactive panels, design sprints, and field visits to coffee farms and processing centres, participants examined persistent decent work deficits in coffee production, such as high informality, unsafe working conditions, and weak enforcement of labour standards, and explored how OSH can serve as a strategic entry point to address broader rights gaps, including freedom of association and collective bargaining, child labour, forced labour, and non-discrimination.
"Our commitment (following the meeting) is to design - with ILO support - a plan for the implementation of rural employment contracts, as mandated by the new labour reform, which integrates respect for fundamental labour rights and provides decent work for the rural population, all of this in collaboration with the various actors in the chain, within the framework of a responsible tripartite dialogue that promotes the closing of gaps in the formalisation of rural production chains such as coffee and others.", Yomar Andrés Benítez Álvarez, Director of Fundamental, said.
Country delegations collaborated in teams to identify key challenges and design prototype action plans aimed at improving compliance with FPRW through social dialogue and tripartite cooperation. Each team identified systemic barriers - legal, institutional and cultural - and committed to piloting targeted initiatives upon returning home, with continued technical support from the ILO.
© OIT
From the field to dialogue: turning learning into action
The event combined dialogue with interregional sharing of experiences and good practices. During field visits to coffee farms and cooperatives in the city of Três Pontas, participants observed OSH practices in action and engaged directly with producers and workers about everyday challenges. These first-hand insights helped refine the country action plans, ensuring that proposed solutions were grounded in real working conditions.
Later, in Belo Horizonte (Minas Gerais), participants participated in International Coffee Week (SIC), one of the world's largest coffee fairs, where the ILO hosted the side event "Building Bridges: A Global Dialogue to Promote Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work in the Coffee Supply Chain."
The panel brought together representatives from government, employers' and workers' organizations, including the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC) and CONTAR, to share good practices and highlight how social dialogue can advance respect for rights and strengthen OSH across the global coffee value chain.
"A comprehensive cooperative model is the best pathway to achieve efficient effective and sustainable adherence to Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work in the coffee supply chain", Juliet Kutyabwana, Secretary General, National Union of Cooperative Commercial Agricultural and Allied Workers Union (NUCCAW), Uganda, said.
Throughout the week, delegates emphasized that social dialogue and collective action are key to achieving lasting improvements in safety and rights. A dynamic fishbowl discussion examined the factors that make dialogue effective, featuring experiences from Brazil ("Pacto") and Colombia ("Mesa Ejecutiva"), complemented by short video contributions from ILO specialists.
By the end of the event, each country delegation presented its prototype action plan and committed to piloting it, outlining concrete next steps to improve working conditions in the coffee sector.
"During the meeting, I confirmed that tripartism and social dialogue are the most effective pathways to improving OSH in the coffee supply chain. Governments, employers, and workers may have differences, but the discussions showed that progress is only possible when we move together toward a common purpose, when we advance in the same direction.", Dr. Rodrigo Hugueney de Amaral Melo, Labour Affairs Coordinator, National Coffee Commission (CNA), said.
Coffee sustains the livelihoods of over 20 million families worldwide, yet many workers continue to face unsafe and informal working conditions. Through this South-South Cooperation initiative, the ILO is supporting countries in strengthening national systems, promoting decent work, and ensuring that coffee is produced under safe and fair conditions for all.
The ILO will continue to support participating countries in implementing and monitoring their pilot initiatives, facilitating the exchange of lessons learned, and building collective momentum towards safer and fairer workplaces across the global coffee supply chain.
