The United Nations (UN) International Day of Cooperatives (ICD) or CoopsDay is annually observed across the globe on the 1st Saturday of July to increase awareness of cooperatives and promote ideas of international solidarity, economic efficiency, equality, and world peace, contributing to the development of society.
- The day also commemorates the establishment of the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), one of the oldest Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO), and one of the largest organizations by the number of people represented.
ICD 2025 falls on 5 July 2025, marks the 103rd International Cooperatives Day and the 31st UN International Day of Cooperatives.
- ICD 2024 was observed on 6 July 2024.
Theme:
i.The 2025 ICD theme is “Cooperatives: Driving Inclusive and Sustainable Solutions for a Better World”.
ii.The theme emphasizes the abilities of cooperatives to deliver people-centered, democratic, and sustainable solutions amid growing challenges such as inequality, climate crises, and economic instability.
Significance:
i.The day aligns with the 2nd World Summit for Social Development (WSSD2), which will focus on social inclusion, poverty eradication, and sustainable development.
ii.It also aligns with the United Nations High-Level Political Forum (HLPF), which will review progress on Sustainable Development Goals 3 (SDGs 3) (Good Health and Well-Being), 5 (Gender Equality), 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), 14 (Life Below Water), and 17 (Partnerships for the Goals).
Background:
i.The International Cooperative Day(ICD) has been celebrated on the first Saturday of July since 1923.
- The first ever Cooperative Day was observed on July 7, 1923.
ii.In December 1992, the UN General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution A/RES/47/90, proclaiming the 1st Saturday of July 1995 to be the International Day of Cooperatives, marking the centenary of establishing ICA.
iii.Since 1995, the UN-recognized International Day of Cooperatives has been jointly observed alongside the International Cooperative Day.
International Year of Cooperatives (IYC 2025):
i.The UNGA officially proclaimed 2025 as the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC 2025) by adopting Resolution A/RES/78/289 on June 19, 2024.
ii.The year is themed “Cooperatives Build a Better World”, and highlights the critical contributions of cooperatives to advancing sustainable development and achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030
Cooperative and Cooperative Movement:
i.Cooperatives are associations and enterprises that empower citizens to improve their lives and contribute to the community’s economic, social, cultural, and political progress.
ii.The cooperative movement is highly democratic, and locally autonomous, but internationally integrated into overcoming poverty, securing employment, and fostering social integration.
- It has been recognized as a key stakeholder in both national and international affairs.
Note: Cooperatives include at least 12% of people worldwide, with over 3 million cooperatives globally.
History of Cooperatives:
i.The earliest record of a cooperative comes from Fenwick, Scotland on 14 March 1761.
- Local weavers established the Fenwick Weavers’ Society selling discounted oatmeal in John Walker’s cottage.
ii.In 1844, a group of 28 artisans from the cotton mills in the town of Rochdale, in Lancashire, England, established the 1st modern cooperative business, the Rochdale Equitable Pioneers Society, also known as the Rochdale Pioneers.
Note:There are over 3 million cooperatives globally, with the top 300 alone generating a combined turnover of USD 2,409.41 billion.
2025 Events in India:
Union Minister Amit Shah, Ministry of Cooperation (MoC), laid the foundation stone of India’s first national level cooperative university Tribhuvan Sahkari University (TSU) in Anand, Gujarat.
- The aim of establishing the TSU is to prepare professional and trained manpower to meet the growing needs of the cooperative sector.
i.TSU will provide specialized education, training and research opportunities in areas such as cooperative management, finance, law and rural development.
ii.Union Minister Amit Shah also participated in tree plantation under the campaign, “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam”.
iii.He also unveiled an educational module, prepared by the New Delhi (Delhi) based National Centre for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to familiarize school students with the principles of cooperation and the impact of the cooperative movement in India.
Key Initiatives by GoI:
i.The Government of India (GoI) has issued Model Bye-Laws for Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) to standardize and modernize their functioning across India. Currently Model Bye-Laws are adopted by 32 States/Union Territories (UTs).
ii.A total of 67,930 PACS are being computerized, with Rs. 752.77 crores given to states and Rs.165.92 crores to Mumbai (Maharashtra) based National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development (NABARD).
- Currently 54,150 PACS are on Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software, and 43,658, are live.
iii.Multipurpose PACS (MPACS), Dairy, Fisheries Cooperative Societies are being established in every Panchayat/Village. As on March 31, 2025, 18,183 new MPACS, Dairy & Fisheries Cooperatives have been registered.
iv.White Revolution 2.0 was launched by MoC on 19 September 2024, inaugurated on 25 December 2024, to boost milk production and procurement by dairy cooperatives by 50% over 5 years.
- So far, 9,695 Dairy Cooperative Societies have been registered across 27 States/UTs.
v.A total of 8.42 lakh cooperative societies have been mapped under the National Cooperative Database, with the NCD Portal officially launched on 8th March 2024.
About the Ministry of Cooperation (MoC):
Union Minister – Amit Shah (Constituency – Gandhinagar, Gujarat)
Minister of State (MoS) – Krishnan Pal (Constituency – Faridabad, Haryana), Muralidhar Mohol (Constituency- Pune, Maharashtra)
