International Day of Cooperatives 2021; July 03rd

 FORUM: "Rebuild Better Together". International Day of Cooperatives 2021.

The ICA calls on cooperators and partners around the world to get ready to celebrate #CoopsDay on 3 July and to show the world how we can Rebuild better together.

Statement from the President of the International Cooperative Alliance, Ariel Guarco, for the 2021 International Day of Cooperatives. The theme of this edition is "Rebuild Better Together".

International Day of Cooperatives 2015, July 4th.

国际合作社日, 7月4日.

Международный день кооперативов, 4 июля.

International Day of Cooperatives, 4 July.
Día Internacional de las Cooperativas, 4 de julio.

Journée internationale des coopératives, 4 juillet.

 اليوم الدولي للتعاونيات - 4 تموز/يوليه

Тема 2015 года — «Выбираем кооперативы, выбираем равенство»

2015年主题：“选择合作，选择平等”

Theme for 2015: Choose co-operative, choose equality.

Lema de 2015: «Elija cooperativo - elija equidad»

Thème 2015 : « Optez pour les coopératives, optez pour l'égalité »

موضوع 2015: باختيارك التعاونيات تختار المساواة

Choose co-operative, choose equality.

United Nations Secretary-General's Message for the International Day of Cooperatives 2015.

The theme of this year’s observance of the International Day of Cooperatives -- “Choose cooperatives, choose equality” -- highlights the invaluable role of cooperatives in making the vision of a sustainable future a reality for everyone.
Inequality is a fundamental obstacle to development, depriving people of basic services and opportunities to build better lives for themselves and their children, The cooperative model helps meet this challenge. Cooperatives strive to uphold the principles of equality and democratic participation. They are strongly committed to the communities they serve. This business model, built on inclusion and sustainability, offers a pathway toward economic, social and political justice for all.
Research has shown that cooperatives help to lower wage differences between men and women, and to promote greater equality in work and training opportunities. With an estimated one in every six people in the world either a member or client of a cooperative, and some 2.6 million cooperatives employing 12.6 million people, the potential contribution to sustainable development is enormous.
In this crucially important year in which the world will commit itself to an inspiring new development agenda, including a set of sustainable development goals, let us recommit to the cooperative business model and use its many benefits to fulfil our vision of a life of dignity for all.

Ban Ki-moon

Message by ILO Director-General Guy Ryder for the International Day of Cooperatives 2015.
“Choose cooperatives, choose equality" - International Labour Organization (ILO).

I am pleased to join the international community in celebrating the International Day of Cooperatives which this year focuses on the theme "Choose cooperatives, choose equality".
As people-centered, principle driven, member owned businesses cooperatives have a long tradition of promoting equality. Their values of “equality and equity” are translated into members’ equal voting rights and access to the products and services of the cooperative, as well as to an equitable distribution of surpluses. In addition to creating a viable enterprise model that generates productivity and income, cooperatives are well placed to help tackle social inequalities, discrimination and exclusion based on gender, age, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation and differential abilities.
Not surprisingly, cooperatives have also proved to be effective vehicles for realizing decent work for all. This role of cooperatives has long been recognized in the almost100 years of ILO history. It is reflected in Recommendation No 193 of 2002 on the promotion of cooperatives. The Recommendation on the transition from the informal to the formal economy adopted by the ILO’s International Labour Conference in June 2015 calls on member States to promote cooperatives and other social and solidarity economy units in integrated policy frameworks to facilitate this transition.
In the rural and informal economies we have seen first-hand how women, youth and indigenous peoples are increasing their income and their standard of living by using the cooperative way of working: from a California-based initiative in which marginalized women workers run worker-owned green businesses, to a furniture making cooperative that employs people with disabilities in the Philippines to a Tanzanian cooperative that supports educational expenses of orphans and vulnerable children with significant revenues generated from the sales of their products.
Worker cooperatives and multi-stakeholder cooperatives are rapidly increasing and have provided the means for workers in companies that are going bankrupt, unemployed youth, and laid off public workers to enjoy the prospect of a better future.
In low income communities, cooperatives of housing, tourism and renewable energy can help to achieve an equitable distribution of economic returns. The ILO is examining how cooperative arrangements for the provision of care services can improve the well-being of care workers, care beneficiaries and the community at large. And, as the world of work evolves, the cooperative model can be used to bring technological, social and organizational innovation through pooling of people, knowledge, technology and resources helping to bridge the gaps that perpetuate economic and social inequality.
The ILO looks forward to working more closely with cooperative enterprises to promote cooperative ideals and to expand access to opportunities for decent work, an objective reflected in the renewed partnership agreement signed on 30 June 2015 by the ILO and the ICA and by joint work such as a recent ILO/ICA survey on cooperatives and gender equality .
As the international community moves toward the adoption of the post 2015 global development framework, let us ensure that cooperatives find their place in effective strategies to promote social justice and decent work for all.

Guy Rider, International Labour Organization.

Statement of the International Co-operative Alliance for the 93rd International Co-operative Day and the 21st UN Day of Cooperatives (4 july 2015), Choose co-operative, choose equality.

Equality is a fundamental value that ensures that all people can reap the benefits of economic and social development. Yet, we live in a world that remains rife with inequalities: according to recent data 0.7% of the world population holds 44% of all the wealth, while 70% only holds 3%. Everywhere there are still people discriminated against based on their gender, age, religion, or socio-economic condition among other factors.
Equality has been, since the beginning, a core value of the co-operative movement. By building co-operatives, people all over the world have chosen a democratic model of business that fosters equality.
As early as 1846 Eliza Brierley became the first woman to join, as a member, The Rochdale Equitable Pioneers Society at a time when women did not normally own property. But the Rochdale Pioneers rules of 1844 saw no difference between male and female members, setting a standard that was later adopted by co-operatives across the world.

Today, there are more than 2.4 million co-operatives with over 1 billion members – three times more than direct shareholders of investor-owned companies. Furthermore, 250 million people are employed by or organise their livelihood through these co-operatives. The largest 300 co-operatives have combined annual revenues of USD 2.2 trillion – the equivalent of the GDP of the 7th largest economy in the world – and the movement is growing fast, particularly in emerging nations such as Brazil, India and China.

In a co-operative, equality means three things:
1. Membership is open and voluntary – without discrimination on any grounds – and each member has one vote, guaranteeing that the structure and control of the co-operative is equal. Unlike investor-owned companies, in a co-operative equality is a benefit of membership and is not linked to the financial capacity of the individual.
2. A co-operative works to satisfy the needs and aspirations of its members and for the sustainable development of society at large. The role of co-operatives in lifting millions of people out of poverty is undeniable – co-operatives distribute the wealth they create in a fairer and more equal way. As just one example, a co-operative project in Senegal has improved food security for 1 million individuals across 60 rural communities, improving household income by 250% and reducing the instances of underweight children by 35%.
3. While performing their activities, co-operatives offer all individuals – producers, workers, consumers – the opportunity to: pursue their economic needs and aspirations; become better integrated into society; and have access to goods, services and benefits that they would not otherwise have. This culture of equality also allows co-operatives to reflect the diversity of the people they serve.

Whether by developing gender equality; giving opportunities to young people; integrating minorities in the labour market; helping the transition from informal to formal economies; reducing the wage gap; giving economic power to the poor; allowing equal access to fundamental resources like water, energy, education, financial services, and many others, co-operative enterprises demonstrate on a daily basis that there is a choice that can shift the paradigm and can mainstream equality in economic and social development.

Across all sectors of the economy there are examples of co-operatives that make equality possible: credit unions that share their financial benefits directly with their members through higher returns on savings, lower rates on loans, and fewer, lower fees; health co-operatives that provide affordable and accessible health plans to marginalised populations; electrical co-operatives that serve rural areas, ensuring basic access to energy in places where others would not consider service provision and business development; retail consumer-owned co-operatives providing access to affordable, high-quality, and sustainable food such as organic or Fair Trade products; co-operative and mutual insurers that help disadvantaged populations protect themselves against basic risks thus allowing them to perform their activities in a safer, more confident way.

In a context where global challenges such as climate change and food security will increase inequality because they will disproportionally affect the ones that are already in dire situations, the world needs more equality, not less. By diversifying the global economy through the promotion and development of co-operatives, people, governments and society can help change this.
As businesses based on the principle of equality, we call on governments to promote national action and innovation to redress inequalities and we call on the United Nations and the international community to build equality into the heart of its on-going work to set a Post-2015 Development agenda, including a framework to address the challenges and risks of climate change, that takes into account the role and contribution of co-operative enterprises.

The International Co-operative Alliance calls on the co-operative movement to take this opportunity to showcase and promote the different ways co-operative enterprises advance equality

 
Statement 4 July 2015
The International Co-operative Alliance
  « Choose co-operative, choose equality »

FORUM : International Day of Cooperatives - July 5

The aim of this International Day is to:

• Increase awareness on cooperatives;
• Highlight the complementarily of the goals and objectives of the United Nations and the international cooperative movement;
• Underscore the contribution of the movement to the resolution of the major problems addressed by the United Nations;
• Strengthen and extend partnerships between the international cooperative movement and other actors, including governments, at local, national and international levels.

This year, International Co-operative Day, to be celebrated on 4 July, will have the theme of “Choose co-operative, choose equality”.
The co-operative movement presents a unique combination of global reach and needs-based business conduct. Play an important role in poverty reduction by widening ownership and by giving people a voice, both inside their organizations and in society as a whole.



 

Publications on cooperatives

• COPAC publications
•  FAO Publications
• ICA Publications 
• ILO COOP Publications 
• UN Documents & Publications

Resilience of the Cooperative Business Model in Times of Crisis. ILO

We put more time in choosing our shampoo than our economy. Going co-operative is making a choice, and one that creates a more equal world! 'Choose co-operative, choose equality' is the theme of the 2015 International Day of Co-operatives! Find all the info on www.coopsday.coop!

20th United Nations International Day of Cooperatives, July 5

International Day of Cooperatives, 5 July.

Международный день кооперативов, 5 июля.
Día Internacional de las Cooperativas,5 de julio.

Journée internationale des coopératives, 1er samedi de juillet.

اليوم الدولي للتعاونيات , يوليو 5

国际合作社日, 7月6日.

United Nations Secretary-General's Message for the International Day of Cooperatives 2014.

This year’s International Day of Cooperatives falls at a critical time. The United Nations is working to lay the groundwork for success on three major fronts in 2015: reaching the Millennium Development Goals; achieving a meaningful new climate agreement; and adopting a long-range agenda for inclusive sustainable development.
Cooperative enterprises can help further these objectives. They are helping communities in both developed and developing countries to generate energy, manage water supplies and provide other basic services. Cooperatives are particularly important to agriculture, food security and rural development. In the finance sector, cooperatives serve more than 857 million people, including tens of millions who live in poverty.
As member-owned, member-run and member-serving businesses, cooperatives can put social justice and equity at the heart of economic progress while helping to ensure that the production and provision of goods and services matches the needs and aspirations of communities.
On this International Day of Cooperatives, let us commit to making even greater use of these arrangements to empower people and usher in a more sustainable future.

Ban Ki-moon

The global E-magazine on cooperatives in industry and services

This year, International Co-operative Day, to be celebrated on 5 July, will have the theme of "Co-operative enterprises achieve sustainable development for all.” Concern for the community is one of the co-operative movement’s founding values and, as such, the need to sustainably safeguard favourable living conditions for communities underpins all co-operatives’ operations and vision.

Theme for 2014: Co-operative enterprises achieve sustainable development for all.

Tema de 2014: Las empresas cooperativas logran el desarrollo sostenible para todos.
Thème pour 2014: Les entreprises coopératives aboutissent au développement durable pour tous.
Тема для 2014: Кооперативные предприятия достижения устойчивого развития для всех.
 主題2014年：合作經營企業實現可持續發展的一切。
 موضوع لعام 2014: الشركات التعاونية تحقيق التنمية المستدامة للجميع.
 2014のテーマ：協同組合企業はすべてのために持続的な発展を実現しています。

Since that date the global community celebrates United Nations International Day of Cooperatives and ICA's International Cooperative Day on the first Saturday of July. The United Nations Secretary-General issues a message on the occasion of the day as does the International Co-operative Alliance as well as other COPAC members. Celebrations of the Day are held at the international, national and local levels around the world.

The Cooperative Movement :

The significance of cooperatives have been acknowledged as associations and enterprises through which citizens can effectively improve their lives while contributing to the economic, social, cultural and political advancement of their community and nation. The cooperative movement has been also recognized as a distinct and major stakeholder in both national and international affairs.

The cooperative movement is highly democratic, locally autonomous but internationally integrated, and a form of organization of associations and enterprises whereby citizens themselves rely on self-help and their own responsibility to meet goals that include not only economic but social and environmental objectives, such as overcoming poverty, securing productive employment and encouraging social integration.
In 1992, following a concerted lobbying effort by the cooperative movements in membership of the International Co- operative Alliance (ICA) and members of the Committee for the Promotion and Advancement of Cooperatives (COPAC), the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the International Day of Cooperatives by the UN by resolution 47/90 of 16 December 1992.

The resolution states:

"... The General Assembly, ... Proclaims the first Saturday of July 1995 to be the International Day of Cooperatives, marking the centenary of the establishment of the International Cooperative Alliance, and decides to consider the possibility of observing an International Day of Cooperatives in future years; ..."

The date of the celebration of the International Day was chosen to coincide with the already existing International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) International Cooperative Day with has been celebrated since 1923.
In 1994, the United Nations General Assembly adopted another resolution 49/155 of 23 December 1994 on cooperatives which not only called on governments and international agencies to:

"consider fully the potential of cooperatives for contributing to the solution of economic, social and environmental problems in formulating national development strategies; and consider reviewing legal and administrative constraints on the activities of cooperatives with a view to eliminating those constraints that are not applied to other businesses and enterprises",

but also invited:

"...governments, relevant international organizations, specialized agencies and national and international cooperative organizations to observe annually the International Day of Cooperatives on the first Saturday of July starting from 1995, as proclaimed by the General Assembly in its resolution 47/90".

Cooperative enterprises achieve sustainable development for all. Panel Discussion, International Day of Cooperative 2014

 Cooperative enterprises put social justice and equity at the heart of economic progress. As member-owned, member-run and member-serving businesses, cooperatives empower people to collectively realize their economic aspirations, while strengthening their social and human capital and developing their communities.

To celebrate the International Day of Cooperatives this year, UNDESA-DSPD in partnership with the Committee for the Promotion and Advancement of Cooperatives (COPAC) will organize a panel discussion on “Cooperative enterprises achieve sustainable development for all” on 10 July 2014 from 10am to 1pm in conference room 3 (CB) at UN Headquarters, New York.

The 2014 commemoration of the International Day of Cooperatives will highlight the principles, values and operational realities of cooperatives that make them unique instruments for achieving sustainable development and showcase the importance of the business model to realizing people-centred, inclusive development, post-2015.




Newsletters : 

ILO and Cooperatives - ILO COOP News No. 1, 2014

This issue of the COOP News includes articles on various events, projects, trainings and meetings related to the work of the ILO's COOP Unit between January and March, 2014.


Publications : 

Providing clean energy and energy access through cooperatives

Providing clean energy and energy access through cooperatives - ILO

This publication is a collection of case studies on cooperatives in energy production, distribution and consumption as a contribution to the on-going search for ways in which the goal of sustainable Energy for All can be turned into a reality.


Cooperatives and Sustainability - An investigation into the relationship.

Cooperatives and Sustainability - An investigation into the relationship.

 

Last month, the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) held their annual conference in Cape Town. One the presentations at this conference included reporting on the results of a partnership project, between Community Research Connections and the Sustainability Solutions Group, that investigated the relationship between the cooperative model and sustainable development. This research employed a unique methodology to compare key concepts distilled from seminal literature on sustainability to (firstly) the cooperatives principles and (secondly) websites and annual reports from various cooperatives around the world. As this was a global scan, the study was limited in the manner that it did not visit the cooperatives on-the-ground and thus could not validate whether cooperatives are actually acting in a sustainable manner; however, this work served as an initial step to see if cooperative model inherently leads to thinking and speaking about sustainability.

Some of the main observations from the research include:

1. Co-operatives are involved in the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainability.
2. The co-operative principles are more closely aligned with the social dimensions of sustainability.
3. Similarly, co-operatives websites and annual reports (overall) most strongly related to social aspects of sustainability.
4. In communicating their efforts on sustainability, co-operatives understate their efforts on Principles 1, 2 and 3.
5. A co-operative is sustainable when it is an economically viable business that fully implements the seven co-operative principles, and maintains or regenerates the ecosystem in which they are embedded.
6. Co-operative associations lag behind co-operatives in advancing a comprehensive sustainability agenda.
7. Of the cooperative principles, concepts related to principle 5 (education, training, knowledge sharing), principle 6 (cooperation among cooperatives), and principle 7 (sustainable community development) were strongly communicated.
8. Cooperatives websites highlighted sustainability concepts, whereas in the annual reports, sustainability concepts were discussed in context with items (e.g., items relating business operations).

The report can be downloaded from Sustainability Solutions Group's website here, and the presentation on the research can be downloaded from here.

Cooperatives and the Sustainable Development Goals - A contribution to the Post-2015 Development Debate. A ploicy Brief

Cooperatives and the Sustainable Development Goals - A contribution to the Post-2015 Development Debate. A ploicy Brief

 This brief summarizes the main findings of a forthcoming report of the same title, by Frederick O. Wanyama of Maseno University in Kenya, prepared as part of ILO’s contribution to the initiative on the contribution of cooperatives to sustainable development.

Cooperative movement engagement in sustainable development and the post-2015 process: Survey findings

Cooperative movement engagement in sustainable development and the post-2015 process: Survey findings

In order to bring cooperative voices into the discussion around the post-2015 development agenda, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) have launched an initiative on the contribution of cooperatives to sustainable development. This brief reports on the results of an online survey that investigated the current and potential contributions of cooperatives to sustainable development.

Resource guide on cooperatives

"The term 'cooperative' means an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically controlled enterprise."

 Forum :International Day of Cooperative, July 5th

U.S. Overseas Cooperative Development Council (OCDC) - Sustainable development: It’s what OCDC does 

 OCDC brings together organizations committed to building a more prosperous world through cooperatives. Its mission is to champion, advocate and promote effective international cooperative development. OCDC members are global leaders in cooperative development in Africa, Latin America and Asia. With projects in over 70 counties, OCDC members implement the largest port folio of cooperative development programs in the world. Members are: ACDI/VOCA, Cooperative Resources International, Global Communities, HealthPartners, Land O'Lakes International Development, NCBA CLUSA  , National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and the World Council of Credit Unions


This year, International Co-operative Day, to be celebrated on 5 July, will have the theme of “Co-operative enterprises achieve sustainable development for all.” Read message here
Cette année, la Journée internationale des coopératives, qui sera célébrée le 5 juillet, aura pour thème : « les entreprises coopératives aboutissent au développement durable pour tous ». Lire message ici
El lema de esta edición del Día Internacional de las Cooperativas, que se celebrará el 5 de julio, será “Las empresas cooperativas logran el desarrollo sostenible para todos”. Leer noticia aquí


GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS

The Global Competitiveness Report 2013-2014 assesses the competitiveness landscape of 148 economies, providing insight into the drivers of their productivity and prosperity. The Report series remains the most comprehensive assessment of national competitiveness worldwide.

 
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"Promoting Cooperatives Beyond 2012"

"Promoting Cooperatives Beyond 2012"

 

 

The International Year of Cooperatives (IYC) Short Film Festival will take place on 20 November 2012 at the United Nations Headquarters during the closing ceremony of the Year under the theme "Promoting Cooperatives Beyond 2012".

The seven winners selected raise awareness about cooperatives – what they are, and what they do – and encourage support and development of cooperative enterprises by individuals and their communities. The films also highlighted at least one of the 10 key messages of the International Year of Cooperatives:

• Cooperative enterprises build a better world.
• Cooperative enterprises are member owned, member serving and member driven
• Cooperatives empower people
• Cooperatives improve livelihoods and strengthen the economy
• Cooperatives enable sustainable development
• Cooperatives promote rural development
• Cooperatives balance both social and economic demands
• Cooperatives promote democratic principles
• Cooperatives and gender: a pathway out of poverty
• Cooperatives: a sustainable business model for youth

Winners of the International Year of Cooperatives Short Film Festival

1. What's to love about food co-ops? (2 minutes)
Produced by the National Cooperative Grocers Association
Country: USA

2. Cooperative of Apurimac (14 minutes)
Produced by Miko Meloni

Country: Peru


3. Women with courage (15 minutes)
Produced by Charlotte Marchesseault
Country: Brazil

4. Co-op Housing: more than a home (8 minutes)
Produced by the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada
Country: Canada

5. Food For Change: The Twin Cities Story (14:56 minutes)
Produced by Steve Alves
Country: USA

6. Red Chillies (15 minutes)
Produced by Samadanie Kiriwandeniya, Sanasa Development Bank
Directed by Rohana Warnakulasooriya
Country: Sri Lanka

7. Cooperative Enterprises Build a Better World by meeting Human Need not Human Greed (12:07 minutes)
Produced by the Co-operative Development Division of the Ministry of Labour and Small and Micro Enterprise Development, Trinidad and Tobago
Country: Trinidad and Tobago

Click here to watch the short films

IYC 2012 : Make your voice heard. "Cooperative Enterprises Build a Better World."

The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2012 the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC). The designation serves to highlight the contribution cooperatives have had in reducing poverty, creating jobs and promoting social integration. The theme for the International Year of Cooperatives 2012 is "Cooperative Enterprises Build a Better World."

Make your voice heard.