BECOME A MEMBER

WHY JOIN US AS A MEMBER?

We strongly encourage you to join the association to make your voice heard and contribute to building a stronger organisation capable of working more efficiently in partnership with others to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals, especially the following ones: (1) No poverty, (2) Zero hunger, (4) Quality education, (5) Gender equality, (8) Decent work and economic growth, (9) Industry, innovation and infrastructure, (10) Reduced inequalities, (12) Responsible consumption and production, (13) Climate action, (15) Life on land, (17) Partnerships for the goals.

Benefit from services that are useful for the sustainability of your company and the agricultural sectors in which you work.

Share your difficulties and find with us the solutions and means to develop your business in a sustainable way.

Join a think tank for debate and exchange on public policies and the private sector in terms of sustainable development and the modernisation of European, ACP and African agriculture – a group that takes into account SMEs and small producers alongside multinationals, not just as beneficiaries but as full partners.

Influence the international scene by focusing on the balance of power within increasingly globalised food value chains, which tends to favour large companies and the players furthest down the chain.

Give more meaning to your action – and ours – by defending our values and vision through the promotion of inclusive and sustainable agriculture, and contribute to the eradication of poverty and the improvement of resilience and food security in which local SMEs play an important role.

COLEAD Members

Any question?

An interprofessional not-for-profit association (established under French Law 1901)

Since 2020, COLEAD has an office in East Africa, in Kenya (Nairobi) to manage the implementation of programmes active in the Kenya.

At a more global level, COLEAD, through its programmes, works with multiple national relays in ACP countries and a team of national and regional programme coordinators. COLEAD also works with a network of over 1,000 local consultants.

COLEAD also has offices in Brussels (central programmes’ implementation unit) and Paris-Rungis (the association's historical headquarters).

150 euros/year for active members (with voting right).

Should it not be possible to cover the membership fee during two consecutive years, it is possible for professional associations, farmer groups and MSMEs located in ACP countries to become associate members of the association, enabling thereby to maintain access to all of the association’ services and resources (but without voting right).

The association has two types of members: active members and associate members. When applying for membership, applicants are eligible for one of the two categories, depending on the nature of their activities.

The sovereign body of COLEAD is its General Meeting of Members. The General Meeting is composed of all the members of the association. However, only active members who have paid their membership fees have the right to vote at these meetings.

The Board of Directors is composed of minimum twelve (12) directors and maximum eighteen (18) directors, half of whom are from ACP countries and half of whom are from nations that are an integral part of the European continent (hereinafter defined as "European"). The Directors are chosen among the permanent representatives of the active members of the association with at least one (1) year standing, and who are up to date with the payment of their membership fees at the time of the elections.

Directors are elected by the General Meeting of Members for a period of three (3) years, starting from the date of the Ordinary General Meeting (OGM) at which the election is held and until the next ordinary elections to be held at the OGM called to approve the financial statements for the fiscal year.

Directorships are not remunerated. The Board meets as often as the interests of COLEACP require, and at least twice a year unless exceptional circumstances prevent the holding of two (2) meetings.

The Board elects from among its members an Executive Committee (Bureau) composed of a President, a Vice-President (from an EU country if the President is from an ACP country, and vice versa), a Secretary General and a Treasurer. The members of the Executive Committee (Bureau) are elected for the duration of their term of office as directors.

The Executive Committee (Bureau) ensures the implementation of the deliberations and resolutions of both the Board of Directors and the General Meeting, ensures the day-to-day management of the association within the framework of the guidelines laid down, and sees to the proper functioning in light of the Articles of Association and in compliance with regulations.

The Board of Directors may, if it so wishes, delegate certain powers of representation, management and signature to the General Delegation, headed by a General Delegate appointed by the Board of Directors and necessarily chosen from outside its members. This delegation of powers is intended to allow a simpler and more fluid day-to-day management of the association’s activities.

Two types of General Meeting are provided for in the Articles of Association: the Ordinary General Meeting (OGM), which deals with the day-to-day life cycle of the association; and the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM), which by definition deals with exceptional matters.

The OGM allows the directors and the General Delegation to exchange with the members of the association about the activities of the past fiscal year and the upcoming fiscal year. The OGM meets annually, no later than six (6) months after the end of the fiscal year. It is chaired by the Chairman of the Board of Directors.

The EGM deliberates on non-routine operations relating to the life cycle of the association, which by definition do not fall within the remit of the OGM. In particular, the EGM is the only competent governing body to deliberate on amendments to be made to the association’s Articles of Association, or to pronounce the dissolution or merger of the association, or its transformation into another legal form. It is chaired by the Chairman of the Board of Directors.

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