La Via Campesina

What La Via Campesina does

La Via Campesina is a global decentralized social movement founded in 1993 with its first International Conference in Mons, Belgium. It is a coalition of 182+ peasant and small-scale farmer organizations operating across nine regional groupings (Arab and North Africa, Caribbean, Central America, Europe, North America, South America, South Asia, South East and East Asia, Southern and Eastern Africa, and Western and Central Africa). The movement coined the term 'food sovereignty' and serves as the primary international advocate for peasant rights, agrarian reform, agroecology, and seed sovereignty, with concentrated engagement at the FAO, UN Human Rights Council, ITPGRFA, and the UN Decade of Family Farming. Its primary activities are international advocacy, coordinated global campaigns, decentralized grassroots mobilization, and policy influence rather than commercial product delivery.

The movement's core outputs are campaigns and content rather than technology products. Headline offerings include the Shigra Virtual digital agroecology resource hub (built on the Peasant-to-Peasant methodology), the UNDROP Training Modules, the 'Peasant Voices' and 'Newswrap' podcast series on Spotify, and the 'Peasant Dawn' documentary. Supporting infrastructure consists of a trilingual website (EN/FR/ES), social media presence on Facebook, X, Instagram, Vimeo, Telegram, and Mastodon, and a Peasant Alerts international solidarity mechanism. The underlying technology stack is conventional rather than proprietary: Matomo for analytics, Network for Good for donation processing, and KoboToolbox/Enketo for newsletter subscriptions. A coordinating secretariat of 87 employees operates alongside regional secretariats including ECVC (Europe), CLOC (Latin America), and MVIWATA (Southern and Eastern Africa).

The business model is donation-led and non-commercial. There are no paid products, no pricing model, and no customer transactions. Revenue consists of donations captured through Network for Good and likely member organization contributions and grants, though no financial figures are disclosed. Governance is exercised through the quadrennial International Conference (eight held since 1993, from Mons in 1993 to Bogota in 2023), with a General Coordinator (Morgan Ody) leading the international secretariat. The 'customer base' is therefore best characterized as a constituency of peasant organizations and individual supporters rather than paying customers, with segment differentiation across Peasants and Small-Scale Farmers, Rural Workers and Migrants, Peasant Women, and Peasant Youth.

Name

La Via Campesina

Legal name

La Via Campesina

Website

https://viacampesina.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

La Via Campesina is a global non-profit peasant movement founded in 1993, coordinating 182+ member organizations across nine regions to advocate for food sovereignty, agrarian reform, agroecology, and peasant rights through international campaigns, UN policy engagement, and decentralized grassroots mobilization.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Morogoro

HQ country

Tanzania

HQ region

Africa

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Member Support: La Via Campesina depends on funding from supporters committed to food sovereignty. The movement maintains autonomy and independence through donations that allow it to voice grassroots proposals and demonstrate agroecological practices in policy spaces. Donations are processed through Network for Good platform.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

La Via Campesina is a global social movement that advocates for food sovereignty and peasants' rights through coordinated international campaigns, educational content, and grassroots mobilization. It provides a digital agroecology knowledge hub (Shigra Virtual), publishes newsletters and reports, produces multimedia content (videos and podcasts), runs international solidarity missions and days of action, and conducts policy advocacy at UN, FAO, WTO, and CFS forums on behalf of 182+ member peasant organizations.

Product overview

La Via Campesina operates as a global peasant movement platform offering advocacy, educational content, and international solidarity services. The core offerings include Shigra Virtual (a digital agroecology resource hub), Publications (newsletters, news wraps, and reports), Videos and Podcasts (documentaries and audio content), UNDROP Training Modules (educational resources on peasants' rights), and Campaign platforms (Global Campaign for Agrarian Reform, Global Campaign for Peasant Seeds). The movement also provides Peasant Alerts for international solidarity responses to human rights violations. The platform functions primarily as a content management and advocacy system rather than a traditional SaaS product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Shigra Virtual A digital agroecology knowledge hub offering reading materials, podcasts, and video content sourced from local, regional, and international member initiatives. Targets member organizations, peasant farmers, and learners engaged in agroecology and food sovereignty.
• UNDROP Training Modules Educational and training resources related to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other Rural Workers (UNDROP), available for download and use by member organizations.
• Global Campaign for Agrarian Reform International advocacy campaign focused on land redistribution, food sovereignty, and rural development policies for peasants and small-scale food producers.
• Global Campaign for Peasant Seeds International campaign to protect peasants' rights to save, use, exchange, and sell seeds, preserving biodiversity and traditional agricultural knowledge against corporate patents and IP regimes.
• Peasant Alerts International solidarity mechanism publishing urgent alerts about peasants facing repression, arrests, and human rights violations, and mobilizing global response.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully advocated for UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other Rural Workers (UNDROP) adopted by UNGA in 2018
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• FAO - Committee on World Food Security (CFS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLa Via Campesina maintains formal engagement with the FAO Committee on World Food Security, participating in policy deliberations and advocating for peasant interests in global food governance. This is a core policy advocacy relationship.
• International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerActive engagement with the Seed Treaty (ITPGRFA) for peasants' rights in seed governance, advocating for farmers' rights to save, use, exchange and sell seeds.
• UN Decade of Family Farming (UNDFF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipation in the UN Decade of Family Farming initiatives, pushing for policies supporting family farmers and peasants globally.
• UN Human Rights CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEngagement with UN Human Rights mechanisms, including advocacy leading to the adoption of UNDROP (UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other Rural Workers) in 2018.
• CLOC - Latin American Coordination of Rural OrganizationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCLOC serves as the regional secretariat for Central America and a key coordination body within La Via Campesina's Latin American operations.
• ECVC - European Coordination Via CampesinacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECVC serves as the regional secretariat for Europe, coordinating peasant organizations across European countries. Website: eurovia.org
• Network for GoodminorGTM or Marketing PartnerThird-party donation processing partner for online contributions. Processes credit card payments securely for the organization.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Heifer International: NGO working on smallholder farmer development and food sovereignty through livestock and sustainable agriculture programs. Comparable as an international organization supporting small-scale farmers, though more focused on development programs.
• Oxfam International: Global confederation of NGOs working on poverty and injustice, with significant programs on small-scale farmer rights, food systems, and trade justice. Comparable as a large international advocacy organization, though broader in scope than La Via Campesina's peasant-specific focus.
• Greenpeace International: Global environmental advocacy organization with campaigns on climate, food systems, and anti-corporate agriculture. Comparable as a large international advocacy organization, though broader in environmental scope.
• IFOAM - Organics International: Global umbrella organization for organic agriculture, setting standards and advocating for agroecology. Comparable as an international organization promoting sustainable agriculture, though more focused on standards/certification.
• ActionAid International: Global federation working on poverty and rights, including food rights, land rights, and smallholder farmer support. Comparable as a large international advocacy organization, though broader in social issues.

Direct peers

• Slow Food: Global grassroots movement advocating for good, clean, and fair food, working with small-scale producers and indigenous communities. Comparable as a member-based movement with overlapping values on food sovereignty and agroecology.
• Friends of the Earth International: Federation of environmental justice groups working on food sovereignty, agroecology, and resisting corporate control of agriculture. Directly comparable grassroots-to-global advocacy model with overlapping campaign priorities.
• FIAN International: Human rights organization focused on the right to food and peasant rights, instrumental in advocating for UNDROP alongside La Via Campesina. Directly comparable as a specialized food rights advocacy organization.
• GRAIN: International NGO supporting small farmers and social movements on land, seeds, biodiversity, and food sovereignty. Directly comparable as a research-and-advocacy organization aligned with peasant movements.
• World Rural Forum: International network advocating for family farming and rural development, active in UN Decade of Family Farming. Directly comparable as an international advocacy organization for smallholder farmers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/via_campesina
• YouTubevimeo.com/viacampesina/videos
• Facebookfacebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL
• Instagraminstagram.com/la_via_campesina_official
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/la-via-campesina

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about La Via Campesina