What world would it be without cooperation?
06/05/2021
Is a worse world possible? Yes, without cooperation.
More fragmented, more insecure, with more inequalities. A worse world for everyone.
Colomba, the international cooperation network of Lombardy made up of 42 civil society organizations, is promoting a campaign to imagine the scenarios that could take shape in a world without international cooperation.
Almost 13% of the world’s population lives on less than 1.90 dollars a day, a percentage that corresponds, in absolute values, to 902 million people. These are just some of the data that give a picture of the inequality between the North and South of the world, the cause of wars, violence, economic and social crises that have inevitable repercussions on all countries.
Such a divided world fuels wars, violence, economic and social crises that affect all countries.
However, this situation can be countered not only with targeted policies and reforms, which are the responsibility of national and international political decision-makers, with the actions and collective measures also promoted by civil society.
International Cooperation, engaged on many fronts to reduce inequalities and improve conditions in the most vulnerable areas of the world, is sometimes forgotten by the media and public opinion. It is often prejudices and fake news that take over and cause the true value of international cooperation to be unknown to most. But what world would it be if it didn’t exist? It is on this that the CoLomba campaign wants to make people reflect.
“In these months in which the world has become smaller due to the Covid 19 pandemic – says Alfredo Somoza, president of CoLomba –
we think it is important to reaffirm the role of bridge between the different peoples of the earth that have historically played cooperation NGOs and international solidarity associations. It is now clear to everyone that no one saves themselves and that the fight against poverty, for the right to health and education, for peace are aspirations that unite us.
The NGOs and associations that are part of CoLomba have been working for decades to affirm these principles and with this campaign we want to talk about our work, make it known, involve citizens in a global enterprise. All our projects, in Italy and in the southern hemisphere, help to give a perspective, to trace a path of mutual cooperation, to fuel the hope that it is possible, together, to build a more just and more sustainable world”