Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Terra

What Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Terra does

Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Terra (MST) is a Brazilian social movement founded in 1984 and headquartered in Brazil, recognized as the largest social movement in Latin America. The organization advocates for agrarian reform and land justice on behalf of landless rural workers, operating through land occupations, the establishment of agricultural settlements, and cooperative production organized around agroecological principles. It runs a national network of settlements, fairs (including the 23rd National Fair in Alagoas), education and training programs (notably PRONERA's nursing program with Fiocruz in Paraná), cooperative-based health initiatives, and a publication arm via Jornal Sem Terra, with state-level coordination bodies across Brazil.

Its operating model is non-commercial and member-driven. Resources are mobilized through cooperative agricultural production, settlement-based enterprises, solidarity contributions, donations, and partnerships with public agencies (INCRA, PRONERA) and civil society organizations (CPT, Fiocruz). MST is also embedded in the Via Campesina international solidarity network, coordinating brigades, medicine solidarity campaigns (e.g., the 2026 Cuba campaign), and joint political action across Latin America. Leadership includes João Pedro Stedile, Gilmar Mauro, João Paulo Rodrigues, Débora Nunes, Lucineia Freitas, Roberto Baggio, Diego Moreira, Elias Araújo, Valbinne Gama, and Rosane Fernandes. Recent strategic moves include partnerships with Ferroviária Futebol (women's football) and Chinese agricultural machinery providers (Northeast mechanization), continuing the movement's 40-year evolution beyond strictly agrarian activity.

Name

Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Terra

Legal name

Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Terra

Website

https://mst.org.br

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

MST is a Brazilian social movement founded in 1984 that organizes landless rural workers, advocates for agrarian reform, and operates agricultural settlements using agroecological methods across Brazil.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Movement Organization

NAICS

Individual and Family Services (6241), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Community Food and Housing, and Emergency and Other Relief Services (6242)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (Fair Trade, Food Access, Regenerative) (BPAGALAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (BPAGAGAI), Gender Equality & Women’s Empowerment (BPAGABAF)

Keywords

• Agrarian reform movement
• Landless workers organizing
• Agroecological production
• Cooperative agriculture
• Social movement advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Not specified

HQ country

Brazil

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Agricultural Production and Cooperatives: MST members engage in cooperative agricultural production within settlements, producing food through agroecological methods. Products are sold through fairs (feiras), direct markets, and the Armazém do Campo retail outlet.
2. Publications and Educational Materials: The movement produces publications including the Jornal Sem Terra (newspaper), Revista Sem Terrinha (magazine), posters, and books through Expressão Popular editorial. These serve both internal education and external advocacy purposes.
3. Health and Social Programs: MST develops popular health programs including medicinal herb cultivation, nursing training through PRONERA, and community health initiatives within settlements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

MST is a Brazilian social movement organization that organizes landless rural workers and families to demand agrarian reform, establishes cooperative agricultural settlements using agroecological methods, and advocates for food sovereignty and social justice. The movement runs educational programs (literacy through university), community health initiatives, and produces publications (Jornal Sem Terra newspaper, Revista Sem Terrinha magazine) while commercializing agroecological food products from settlement cooperatives through the Armazém do Campo retail/e-commerce platform.

Product overview

Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Terra (MST) operates primarily as a social movement organization rather than a technology company. Its digital presence offers a content platform featuring educational publications including the Jornal Sem Terra newspaper, Revista Sem Terrinha children's magazine, and the Biblioteca da Questão Agrária digital library. The movement also maintains media collections through its Videoteca and Musicoteca, and commercializes agricultural products from its settlements through the Armazém do Campo e-commerce platform. These products serve the movement's educational, informational, and economic objectives rather than representing a unified technology product suite.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Sem Terrinha: Children's program and youth wing of the MST movement focusing on education and engagement of children in settlements and encampments.
• Jornal Sem Terra
• Revista Sem Terrinha

Products and services

• Jornal Sem Terra
• Revista Sem Terrinha Children's magazine focused on education and awareness about land rights, agriculture, and social justice for youth in MST communities.
• Biblioteca da Questão Agrária Digital library containing research, documentation, and educational materials about agrarian issues and the land reform struggle.
• Cartazes (Campaign Posters) Campaign posters and visual materials produced by the movement for education, mobilization, and awareness campaigns.
• Produtos do MST (Armazém do Campo) Retail outlet and e-commerce platform selling agricultural products and food items produced by MST settlements and cooperatives through agroecological methods.
• Musicoteca Digital collection of songs and musical content related to the landless workers' movement and social struggles.
• Videoteca Video collection featuring documentaries, interviews, and educational content about MST activities and land reform struggles, distributed via YouTube.

Quantifiable outcome

• Thousands of families settled with land access
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Via CampesinacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1984MST is a founding member of Via Campesina, the international peasant movement bringing together rural organizations from Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Europe. The partnership involves joint organizing, international solidarity campaigns, shared advocacy at UN bodies, and exchange of agricultural and organizing experiences. MST participates in Via Campesina's global campaigns against agrotoxics, for food sovereignty, and in defense of peasants' rights.
• Ferroviária Futebol S/AflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership between Ferroviária (São Paulo football club) and MST for women's football development. The collaboration involves soccer tryouts in MST settlements across northeastern Brazil, with the goal of recruiting talented young women from agrarian reform settlements to professional football. This sport-for-development initiative began in Ceará in 2024 and expanded to Rio Grande do Norte.
• INCRA (Instituto Nacional de Colonização e Reforma Agrária)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMST maintains ongoing negotiations with INCRA, the federal agency responsible for agrarian reform, regarding land regularization, settlement creation, and policy implementation. The relationship involves both confrontational advocacy and cooperative policy dialogue, with MST participating in national land reform councils and programs.
• PRONERA (Programa Nacional de Educação na Reforma Agrária)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPRONERA is an educational program that MST partners with universities to provide education from literacy to university degrees for settlement and encampment families. Partner universities include Unifesspa (Pará), UFPE (Pernambuco), UFPel (Rio Grande do Sul), and UEM (Maringá-PR). Programs include nursing with public health emphasis, law, agronomy, and various technical courses.
• Fiocruz (Fundação Oswaldo Cruz)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFiocruz partners with MST on health education and research, particularly regarding agrotóxico impacts and agroecological alternatives. The foundation supports MST's popular health programs and has defended the MST medical school program against political attacks.
• CPT (Comissão Pastoral da Terra)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLongstanding partnership with the Catholic Church's land commission, which has supported MST since its founding and provides pastoral accompaniment, documentation of land conflicts, and human rights advocacy.
• Rede Brasil AtualminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Rede Brasil Atual media network for coverage and communication support. MST maintains visibility through this progressive media outlet.
• Brasil de FatominorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Brasil de Fato news outlet for progressive media coverage of MST activities and agrarian reform issues.
• Marcha Mundial das Mulheres (MMM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMST's women's sector works closely with the Marcha Mundial das Mulheres, a feminist international organization, on women's rights campaigns including the jornada of landless women and advocacy for women's bodily autonomy.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP): Filipino peasant movement of landless rural workers organized around genuine agrarian reform and opposition to land conversion. Operates in an Asian national context with comparable occupation-driven land rights advocacy and international solidarity linkages via Vía Campesina.
• Confederación Campesina del Perú (CCP): Peruvian peasant confederation organized around land rights, food sovereignty, and opposition to extractive industry encroachment on peasant territories. Comparable grassroots mobilization model in a different Latin American national context.
• Landless People's Movement (South Africa): South African social movement of landless people organized around demands for land redistribution and against evictions. Mirrors MST's occupation-and-settlement methodology in a post-apartheid African national context with comparable agrarian reform politics.
• Federación Nacional Sindical Unitaria Agropecuaria (FENSUAGRO): Bolivian peasant and indigenous agricultural workers' federation affiliated with Vía Campesina. Operates in a similar agrarian reform and food sovereignty space across a neighboring country, with comparable peasant mobilization and cooperative production models.

Direct peers

• CONTAG (Confederação Nacional dos Trabalhadores na Agricultura): Brazil's main agricultural workers' confederation representing family farmers and rural workers through union structures. Operates in overlapping territory with MST on agrarian policy advocacy and rural worker rights, though through a more formal union channel.
• Movimento dos Atingidos por Barragens (MAB): Brazilian social movement of people affected by dam construction, organized similarly to MST around grassroots mobilization, land and resettlement rights, and solidarity-based advocacy. Shares operational model and frequently coordinates campaigns with MST.
• Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Teto (MTST): Brazilian housing-focused social movement organized through land occupations and grassroots mobilization in urban peripheries. Closely parallels MST's operational model of occupying unproductive land, demanding public policy reform, and building community-based settlements.
• Marcha Mundial das Mulheres (MMM): International feminist organization with which MST's women's sector maintains a core partnership. Comparable grassroots mobilization model focused on women's rights, bodily autonomy, and land rights, often co-organizing the Jornada Nacional das Mulheres Sem Terra.
• La Vía Campesina: International peasant movement coordinating rural organizations across Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Europe. MST is a founding member; both share the food sovereignty, agroecology, and anti-agribusiness agenda and operate through similar grassroots mobilization models.
• Comissão Pastoral da Terra (CPT): Catholic Church-affiliated land commission that has supported MST since its founding through pastoral accompaniment, documentation of land conflicts, and human rights advocacy in rural Brazil. Closely aligned mission and overlapping constituency of landless rural workers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC3C5WLLfrDnNsMR7Z-46eug
• Xx.com/MST_Oficial
• Facebookfacebook.com/MSTGoias

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

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 Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Terra