The United Nations (UN)’s International Day of Cooperatives (CoopsDay) is annually observed across the globe on the first Saturday of July to raise awareness about the importance of cooperatives and their contributions to the development of society. CoopsDay is an annual celebration of the Cooperative movement, one of the world’s oldest and largest business networks.
The day also commemorates the establishment of the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), one of the largest non-governmental organisations representing cooperatives.
- ICA was founded in London, England on 19 August 1895 during the 1st Cooperative Congress.
- 1st July 2023 marked the observance of the 101st International Day of Cooperatives.
The theme for the International Day of Cooperatives 2023 is “Cooperatives: partners for accelerated sustainable development”.
- The 2023 theme highlights how the cooperative way of working, inspired by the cooperative values and principles, has the accomplishment of the UNs Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Note: Since 1995, the ICA and the UNs, through the Committee for the Promotion and Advancement of Cooperatives (COPAC), have jointly set the theme for the celebration of CoopsDay.
Background:
i. Since 1923, the International Cooperative Day has been annually celebrated by the global Cooperative Movement on the 1st Saturday in July.
ii. The first-ever Co-operators Day was observed on 7th July 1923.
iii. In December 1992, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the resolution A/RES/47/90 and proclaimed the first Saturday of July 1995 to be International Day of Cooperatives, marking the centenary of the establishment of the ICA.
iv. Since 1995, the UNs International Day of Cooperatives has been observed jointly alongside International Cooperative Day.
v. The 2023 Coops Day marked the 29th International Day of Cooperatives recognised by the UN.
About Co-operative Movement:
i. Co-operatives are associations and enterprises through which people can effectively improve their lives while contributing to the economic, social, cultural and political advancement of their community and nation.
ii. The co-operative movement has been also recognised as a distinct and major stakeholder in both national and international affairs.
Note: In September 2023, the international community will mark the midpoint in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and search ways to demonstrate the contribution of cooperatives in advancing the achievement of the SDGs.
History of Co-operative:
i. The earliest record of a cooperative comes from Fenwick, Scotland on March 14, 1761.
ii. In 1844 a group of 28 artisans working in the cotton mills in the town of Rochdale, in the north of England, the United Kingdom (UK) established the first modern cooperative business, the Rochdale Equitable Pioneers Society, also known as the Rochdale Pioneers.
Events of 2023:
i. An online International Conference ‘Cooperative for Sustainable development’ was held on 1st July 2023 from Donostia, Spain.
ii. During the conference, the Cooperators from all around the world discussed the relationship between the cooperative movement and each of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from 1 to 17.
iii. The event was organised by the Higher Council of Cooperatives of the Basque Country together with Konfekoop and COCETA.
PM inaugurated 17th ICC on the International Day of Cooperatives in Delhi
On the occasion of the International Day of Cooperatives 2023(1st July 2023), Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, inaugurated 17th Indian Cooperative Congress (ICC) on 1st and 2nd July 2023 at International Exhibition-cum-Convention Centre (IECC), Pragati Maidan in New Delhi, Delhi.
- The theme of the congress is ‘AmritKaal: Prosperity through Cooperation for a Vibrant India’.
- The 2-day event organised by National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI) was chaired by Union Minister Amit Shah, Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA) and Ministry of Cooperation.
Note: NCUI is the apex organisation of the cooperative movement in India and is responsible for education and training of more than 8.5 lakh Cooperatives in India. It has a population of more than 30 crore people.
Highlights of the Event:
i.During the event, PM also launched e-commerce platform NCUI Haatfor Cooperative Marketing.
ii. He also unveiled the cooperative extension and advisory services portal, focusing on a learning management system which provides information and services for cooperative members, leaders, managers and the general public.
iii. PM also unveiled a book on ‘Cooperative Growth and Trends in India’, a souvenir on cooperative movement, training modules on “Member’s role in cooperative” and “Governance in Cooperatives”.
Key People:
i. Union Home Minister Amit Shah presided over the inaugural session of the congress and Om Birla, Lok Sabha Speaker graced the valedictory function as Chief Guest.
ii. Union Minister ManuskhMandaviya, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and BL Verma, Minister of State (MoS) for Cooperation also participated in the event.
Objective:
The objective of the meeting is to discuss various trends in the cooperative movement, to showcase the best practices being adopted by the successful cooperatives and to deliberate on challenges being faced by the cooperative world. The event will witness the participation of more than three thousand 600 stakeholders.
Google Cloud-powered e-commerce App for Cooperative communities
On 1st July 2023, Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India launched an e-Commerce App for Cooperative Marketing, created through a partnership between Google Cloud and the National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI), during the 17th ICC in New Delhi, Delhi.
Features of the e-Commerce App:
i. The App will enable cooperatives to sell their products directly across different regions, eliminating the need for intermediaries.
ii. The platform will offer training, capacity building support, and access to government welfare schemes, assisting cooperatives in areas such as packaging, branding, and market reach.
iii. The e-commerce app will serve as a common platform for cooperative communities to showcase and sell their products and services to a larger group of people.
Shares of Cooperative Sector of India:
Cooperative sector has a share of about 29% in agriculture credit distribution, 35% in fertiliser distribution, 25% in fertiliser production, 35% in sugar production, about 30% in spindle sector, almost 15% in milk production, procurement and sale, 13% in wheat procurement, and 20% in paddy procurement.
Additional info:
i. To ensure equality in cooperative law under the constitutional framework, the Parliamentary Committee government has suggested an amendment in the Multistate Cooperative Societies Act. The law will be enforced as suggested by the Parliamentary Committee with consensus coming in the coming session of Parliament.
ii. To bring uniformity in the laws forPrimary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), Ministry of Cooperation prepared the bylaws for PACS and sent it to 26 States and Union Territories (UT) as advisories.
- Around 26 states and UTs have accepted these bylaws and 85% PACS of India will work under the same law after September 2023.
iii. Initiatives were taken in changing the retail outlets and the Centre has also approved world’s biggest food grains storage scheme, with the success of this scheme, the share of cooperatives in the storage system will increase to more than 35% in the next 5 years.
iv. Strengthening the cooperative sector of India by providing PACS in every panchayat of India in the next 3 years.
- Currently 85,000 PACS in India, and 3 lakh PACS will come into existence.
About Ministry of Cooperation:
A separate Ministry of Cooperation in India was set up under the Government of India in 2021.
Union Minister- Amit Shah (Constituency- Gandhi Nagar, Gujarat)
Minister of State (MoS)- B. L. Verma (Rajya Sabha Uttar Pradesh)
