On September 11, 2024, the International Cooperative Alliance Asia-Pacific (ICA-AP) convened a virtual meeting that brought together key cooperative leaders of the organization on one platform.
Dr. Chandrapal Singh Yadav, President of ICA-AP and Vice President of the global ICA, along with Mrs. Savitri Singh, Deputy Chief Executive of the National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI), were among the prominent attendees. The meeting commenced with welcoming remarks from Mr. Balu Iyer, Regional Director of ICA-AP, setting a collaborative tone for the session.
Dr. Yadav followed with his opening remarks, emphasizing the crucial role of cooperatives in addressing contemporary challenges and ensuring their contribution to social and economic development.
The discussions primarily focused on activity updates from various committees within ICA-AP, reflecting on progress made in the past year and identifying areas for further enhancement.
Additionally, the attendees discussed the action plan for 2025, laying the groundwork for future cooperative initiatives.
A significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to preparations for the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC) 2025. This event is expected to spotlight the importance of cooperatives on a global scale, highlighting their contributions to sustainable development, poverty alleviation, and community-building efforts.
The participants emphasized the need for increased collaboration and innovation within the cooperative movement to ensure the success of the upcoming year-long celebration.
The meeting concluded with a shared sense of optimism, with participants committing to strengthen cooperative activities and coordination leading up to IYC 2025, aiming to enhance the global impact of cooperatives in the years ahead.
The event is scheduled to take place for the first time in India, with IFFCO, the leading fertilizer cooperative, playing host along with other co-ops in the country. Planned to be held at Bharat Mandapam, where the G20 meeting took place, IYC 2025 aims to have Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurate the mega co-op show. Confirmation is yet to come.
It is anticipated that Indian cooperatives will share their experiences and views on India’s vision of “#SahkarSeSamriddhi,” and how cooperatives can bring prosperity to farmers, cooperators, and the country.
It is worth recalling that the soft-launch event for the 2025 UN International Year of Cooperatives kicked off with full enthusiasm at the UN Headquarters in New York last week. The event was attended by notable figures in the international cooperative movement.
The Indian team expects the participation of more than 1,500 guests at the event, including about 700 foreign cooperators from around 100 countries who will attend the ICA General Assembly.
Top cooperators from various fields where cooperatives are active—such as dairy, fertilizer, sugar, rural and urban credit, and housing—are also expected to attend the event.
