Rikolto's mission

Our vision and mission

A sustainable income for farmers and nutritious, affordable food for everyone.

Rikolto envisions a world with a sustainable income for farmers and nutritious, affordable food for everyone.

We reach our goals by building bridges between smallholder farmer organisations, companies, authorities, and other actors across rural and urban areas. Together, we create innovative ways of producing, trading, distributing, and accessing nutritious, quality food, so no one is left behind.

Through our global network, we wish to inspire others to tackle with us the interrelated challenges of food insecurity, climate change, biodiversity loss, and economic inequality.

Because a better world starts on our plate

Values & Integrity

Our values

We are an organisation that lives its values. They are part of what makes our organisational culture. Despite differences across regions, they are the invisible glue that connects us all.

Rikolto is its people

We believe in people's drive as a force for change. We operate with a clear understanding that each of our collaborators, partners and individual supporters play an important role in achieving a more fair and just society.

Sustainability

We are striving for a world in which sustainable development is an integral part of the way people think and act.

Open dialogue

Rikolto is a safe space where people can experiment, be creative, fail and learn from their mistakes without any judgement. Externally we value our contacts with the usual actors as well as with the less obvious ones.

Innovation

We are determined and passionate explorers who are not afraid to get our hands dirty looking for practical solutions. We dare to innovate.

Interconnectivity

Sharing is caring. Rikolto is an international network organisation in which connection and collaboration are vital. This helps us to open our minds and learn from each other

Integrity

Doing the right thing even if no-one is looking. We must all maintain the highest standards of moral and financial integrity, which includes truthfulness, fairness and honesty. Rikolto therefore promotes safety, trust and authenticity so people will speak up and encourage others to make the right decisions.

Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct

In June 2019, our International Board of Directors approved Rikolto's Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct. Upholding these Codes is one of the keystones to achieving our organisational goals.

The Code of Ethics is not just a buzzword. It is part of our DNA. We promote an environment in which members of staff take ownership in developing and defining Rikolto’s core values.

Acting in accordance with our core values is more than protecting our image and reputation or avoiding legal problems. Our Code of Conduct guides us through a set of standards to ensure that we all do the right thing and act in line with our six values: belief in people, inclusivity, open dialogue, sustainability, integrity and innovation.

Code of Ethics

Code of Conduct

Our brand

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Our logo refers to the Vitruvian Man by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519).

In this drawing Da Vinci brought together all the elements which, in his view, represented the ideal man. Man as an independent being, but also concerned for the world and his fellow beings; looking forward, building for the future, bringing together art and technology, philosophy and knowledge, reason and emotion into a coherent whole.

Our history

Today's Rikolto is the result of a merger between three Belgian development organisations founded in the 1970s and 1980s: Vredeseilanden, Coopibo and FADO.

In the world

1962: Coopibo was founded as a non-governmental organisation (NGO) focusing on gender issues, smallholder farmers, and methodological advice on organisational development.
1973: The Flemish Organisation of Assistance in Development (FADO) was founded as an NGO, initially dedicated to health projects and poverty alleviation, later changing to sustainable agriculture in Southeast Asia.
1980: Vredeseilanden ("Islands of Peace") V.Z.W. was established as a non-profit association based in Leuven, Belgium. The organisation was founded by Nobel Peace Prize winner Dominique Pire, based on the recognition of the intrinsic link between development and peace.
1994-2001: Vredeseilanden and Coopibo merged to form Vredeseilanden-Coopibo (VECO), and then merged with FADO in 2001.
2018: Vredeseilanden/ VECO changed its name to Rikolto and became an international network organisation. The new structure was organised around three global programmes (Good Food for Cities, Sustainable Rice, and Cocoa & Coffee) through five regional offices in Latin America, East Africa, West Africa, Southeast Asia and Europe(Belgium).

Throughout the years, Rikolto has engaged in numerous sectors, primarily focusing on promoting sustnle agriculture and value chain development. This focus has evolved to encompass the transformation of sustainable food systems in Vietnam.

In Vietnam

Rikolto (under the name FADO) opened its office in Hanoi, Vietnam in September 1994. From 1995, the projects were implemented in Can Gio (Ho Chi Minh City), Vinh Long, Phu Tho, and Lang Son, mainly in mangrove reforestation, microcredit, and sustainable agriculture.
Over the years, Rikolto worked in a wide variety of sectors, but always with a primary focus on supporting sustainable a griculture and value chain development. The project areas expanded to Tuyen Quang, Hanoi, Ha Nam, and Hoa Binh.
From 2017 to 2021, Rikolto implemented a five-year programme called "Supporting Inclusive and Sustainable Agricultural Value Chain Development Benefiting Smallholder Farmers in Vietnam" on fruits, vegetables, and tea in Hanoi, Phu Tho, Ha Nam, VinhPhuc, Da Nang; and rice in An Giang, Kien Giang, and Dong Thap.
From 2022 to 2026, Rikolto has implemented the following 5-year programmes, including Good Food for Cities programme in Hanoi, Ha Nam, Vinh Phuc, and Tuyen Quang; and Sustainable Rice programme in Dong Thap and Kien Giang.

In Indonesia

In 1973, Rikolto, then called "Floresvrienden" or "Friends of Flores", began its work by providing equipment assistance and cultivation training for small farmers inFlores, Indonesia. We work directly with farming communities to help them earna better living.
In 1986, Floresvrienden changedits name to FADO and opened its representative office in Denpasar City in 1990. Our working area expanded from Flores to Maluku, West Nusa Tenggara, CentralJava, East Java and South Sulawesi.
In the 1990s, our programmestrategy focused on four main areas: sustainable agriculture, participatory approaches, gender in development, and institutional capacity building.
In 2008, Rikolto (then"VECO") changed its strategic focus from food security to increasing the income of smallholder farmers through agricultural value chain development .As such, the focus of farmer empowerment is no longer simply the development of sustainable agriculture but emphasises the development and strengthening ofagricultural commodity chains.
In 2017, the focus of our programme evolved from value chain development to a broader sustainable food system. Our work revolves around three primary programmes: sustainable rice,cocoa and coffee, and the Good Food for Cities programme.

From 2022, Rikolto in Vietnam and Indonesia country offices were merged to form the new Southeast Asia hub structure.

Who we are?

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