The Natesan Institute of Cooperative Management (NICM), under the aegis of the National Council for Cooperative Training (NCCT), Ministry of Cooperation, New Delhi, hosted CARPEDIEM 2K25 at its Anna Nagar campus on Friday. The event, themed “Cooperation Meets Innovation,” marked the International Year of Cooperatives 2025 and saw active participation from women’s cooperatives across southern India.
The highlight of the program, COOPQUEST, was the inaugural address by Dr. Nandini Azad, President of the Working Women’s Forum (India) and the Indian Cooperative Network for Women Ltd. (WWF-ICNW). Dr. Azad, one of the world’s leading women cooperators, will soon represent India at COP30 on Climate Change in Brazil, where she is scheduled to speak at the Farmers’ Summit.
In her address, Dr. Azad emphasized how climate change disproportionately impacts women and small farmers, calling for inclusive policies and cooperative-led climate resilience models. She cited WWF-ICNW’s successful work with fisherwomen in Adiramapattinam as a best practice in climate adaptation and economic empowerment. The event also showcased innovative cooperative products and initiatives aimed at inspiring more women to join and lead cooperative ventures.
The Working Women’s Forum (India) – Indian Cooperative Network for Women is a pioneering social movement that has empowered over 6.21 lakh poor women through 13 cooperatives across Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Telangana, covering about 274 occupations. Its President, Dr. Nandini Azad, serves as a global board member of the International Raiffeisen Union and as coordinator of cooperatives at the World Farmers Organization. She is the only woman re-elected to the IRU Board in a century.
WWF-ICNW’s members engaged in diverse occupations, including agriculture, fishing, weaving, horticulture, animal husbandry, hawking, and organic manure production.
Despite facing intersecting challenges of class, caste, and gender, these grassroots women demonstrated remarkable resilience in overcoming poverty, disasters, and gender-based violence through the Forum’s Gender and Equity Cooperative Model.
The Indian Cooperative Network for Women, its credit arm, has integrated gender justice within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals. Since 1995, its Gender and Equality Model has empowered women through microfinance and enterprise support.
ICNW is also among the few cooperative institutions globally to introduce a microfinance product addressing gender-based violence, a groundbreaking initiative often avoided by traditional banking institutions.
CARPEDIEM 2K25 represented a renewed national commitment to strengthening women-led cooperatives and highlighted their vital role in shaping inclusive climate action and sustainable development.
