As part of an online lecture series discussing various topics related to the social and solidarity economy, ActionAid Association (India) along with Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung organised a webinar on “Cooperatives during Crises” on 17 December 2021.
The webinar brought together academicians, activists and practitioners who influence public policy on the cooperative economy. ICA-AP was invited as a panelist to discuss why the cooperative model of production is better at handling periods of crises and how the renewed government impetus can be better implemented in growing India’s social solidarity economy.
Dr. Nandita Mondal, TISS Mumbai laid the context as to why cooperative societies can be better at managing labour relations during periods of crisis. Ms. Savitri Singh, NCUI shared examples of cooperatives within India that have been able to overcome the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and other national emergencies. Mr. Mohit Dave from ICA-AP shared examples of international cooperative societies that managed to overcome the challenges of the global financial crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic and other emergencies. Lastly, Mr. Vineet Tiwari, Joshi Adhikari Institute spoke on the role that Kudumbashree played in avoiding an agrarian crisis in Kerala.
Mr. Dave’s presentation highlighted that the cooperative model of production has been better off during periods of social and economic crises - be it the financial crisis of 2008 or the ongoing public health crisis of COVID-19. He noted several defining features of worker cooperatives that enable them to withstand crises better than other models of production. One such feature is the facilitation of local investment and community-based decision making. Cooperatives also tend to have a more flexible mandate around profit objectives determined by workers or members who are also the shareholders of the organisation. He said that many challenges that constrain the cooperative movement from achieving its full potential can be mitigated through suitable knowledge exchange between cooperatives.
The participants agreed that cooperatives and social solidarity enterprises can create a greater common good for all, creating a “nurturing” economy much needed in such testing times. Community-rooted cooperatives have the potential to provide a viable solution to address challenges of inequality, while simultaneously creating economic growth.
