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The Federación Uruguaya de Cooperativas de Vivienda por Ayuda Mutua (FUCVAM) is a federation of mutual aid housing cooperatives, and is the largest, oldest and most active social organisation working on issues of housing and urban development in Uruguay.
In 2001 a South-South Cooperation project was initiated to support the international transfer of the FUCVAM approach to other countries in the region and around the world.
With the support of the Swedish Cooperative Centre, government agencies and grassroots organisations, FUCVAM has transferred the approach to 15 countries across Latin America, adapting the model to local conditions in different contexts, setting up national federations and networks and supporting local efforts to influence government policy.
FUCVAM mutual aid housing cooperatives
The establishment of FUCVAM in 1970 was a key factor in the consolidation of mutual aid housing cooperatives pioneered by Uruguay in the late 1 960 's. From its inception it has made important achievements which have contributed to the expansion ot the cooperative movement both within Uruguay and in Latin America. The federation works to organise, support and train mutual aid housing cooperatives as well as developing international partnerships.
The model developed and pioneered by FUCVAM follows five key principles:
* Solidarity - creating unity based on common responsibilities and community support to families;
* Democratic participation - active involvement of families and democratic decision-making throughout the planning, design and implementation process;
* Self-management - the cooperative allocates resources and directs all aspects of the project, without intermediaries;
* Mutual aid - joint effort of every beneficiary family in the construction of all homes, each contributing 2 1 hours of work per week;
* Collective ownership - every property is collectively owned. This provides security for families and avoids speculation.
South-South Cooperation
The South-South Cooperation project was initiated in 2001 to support the dissemination of the cooperative housing movement in Uruguay to other countries in the region and around the world....