What does IRU do?

The basic task of IRU is to translate Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen’s ideas in the current time, put them into practice and propagate them with modern means. Therefore IRU sees its priority task in the promotion of the exchange of experiences between its member organizations. Co-operative organizations from developing countries, newly industrialized countries and industrialized countries are represented within the IRU. They made the most various experiences while establishing their co-operatives. Therefore, these experiences and this knowledge have to be passed on to others or at least the possibility should be given to go back to these experiences.

IRU wants, on the basis of the existing experiences, help to avoid wrong developments in the co-operative organizations. This is why strong emphasis is laid on the promotion of exchange of experiences between the members.

IRU also stands for the improvement of the co-operative regulatory framework world-wide. It supports the establishment of non instrumentalized, free enterprise-oriented co-operatives with members’ promotion and therewith orientation on members.

IRU is also the platform on which the member organizations exchange the results of the analysis of co-operative basic issues.