Nepal Co-op Congress: PM Oli reiterates his commitment for co-op movement

Nepal organized a Cooperative Congress which was inaugurated by Napalese Prime of Minister K.P. Sharma Oli. The Prime Minister reiterated his govt’s commitment to the cooperative movement. The event drew a multitude of delegates including those from foreign lands.

Representatives of ICA (Ariel Guarco, President), ICA A-P (Balu Aiyer, RD), NCUI (President Dr Chandra Pal Singh Yadav), ILO, SAARC countries, Japan and Indonesia and several others participated in the event. It was Nepal’s Second Cooperative Congress.

Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister Oli said Nepal is committed to development and it regards cooperative as an effective tool. Balu Aiyer who tweeted continuously on the events quoted Oli saying “This government is with the cooperative movement. We will work side-by-side with you! We all are one!”

Several ministers and former ministers including Pushpa Kamal Dahal, former Prime Minister were present in the closing ceremony, notes Balu’s tweets. Speaking on the occasion, Chairperson of the Nepal Cooperative Federation and the hero of the show, Keshav Badal urged the government to bring in the cooperative rules and bylaws as soon as possible.

Minister for Agriculture, Land Management and Cooperatives, Chakrapani Khanal, said that the rules and bylaws were under the amendment process to make the cooperative sector further stronger and added that cooperative would be linked with production.

The Minister said that the Ministry had been doing homework to attract cooperatives into the agro sector. Likewise, Minister of State for Agriculture, Land Management and Cooperatives, Ram Kumari Chaudhary, pointed out the need for further promoting the cooperative sector as a means of alleviating poverty.

Mr. Ariel Guarco, President ICA said “Cooperative movement should play its part in SDGs by promoting inclusive growth and sustainable development by adhering to its values of self-help, democracy, autonomy & self-reliance.”

Panel discussion on Strategic Engagement of Development Partners for achieving SGDs with Co-operatives was also held. Cooperatives’ role in women empowerment was stressed.

Also speaking on the occasion, Finance Minister Dr. Yubaraj Khatiwada stressed on the need of both quality and quantity in the development of the cooperative sector. He pledged to create an atmosphere that would encourage cooperatives into making additional investments in the areas such as tourism, agriculture, and hydropower.