The 33rd ICA World Cooperative Congress in December 2021 with the theme, Deepening the Cooperative Identity, will celebrate and deepen the understanding of the Statement on the Cooperative Identity (SCI) and the profound social and economic impact of cooperatives worldwide. The ICA Statement on the Cooperative Identity provides a common definition of cooperatives, a specific commitment to cooperative and ethical values, and clarity on the operational principles that differentiate us from other forms of businesses.
The ICA-AP regional office is bringing the perspective of Asia-Pacific members into the conversation through online consultation, events, articles and interviews.
For this issue, the theme is “Cooperative Identity and New Dimensions of Cooperatives” where, we focus on entrepreneurship and technology. Youth today are involved in traditional and non-traditional businesseses which are facilitated by technology. A global study on Youth Cooperative Entrepreneurship by CICOPA shows that in a changing world of work, “cooperatives can be a concrete tool in the hands of young people for improving their work and entrepreneurship conditions.” According to the Study, “cooperatives can “inject” democracy and participation inside the digital economy, by giving ownership and control of power to the people who use and work through online platforms.” Cooperatives can play a huge role in giving a new dimension to these new-age start-ups.
In the Asia-Pacific we are seeing innovative initiatives by youth and cooperatives. In Indonesia, Innocircle Initiative, is a start-up coop incubator and collaboration space for innovation, creativity, and new initiatives. In Singapore, NTUC Learning Hub provides high quality, innovative products and affordable learning to enhance the employability of Singapore’s workforce. Coopathon, by ICA-AP and Creathon by Singapore National Cooperative Federation (SNCF) are steps to foster innovation and entrepreneurship among youth while following the cooperative values and principles.
We hear perspectives from Mr. Tarun Bhargava, Chairperson of ICA’s International Cooperative Entrepreneurship Think Tank (ICETT) and the Joint General Manager of Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Ltd. (IFFCO) on cooperative entrepreneurship. Mr. Moses Sam Paul, a Technology and Public Policy professional who is in the process of setting up TheThirdPillar - a labour market "research" and "do" foundation how the cooperative identity can bring avenues for gig workers going digital. We highlight the case study of Creathon, a cooperative business challenge for youth, to come up with innovative solutions to address social and economic challenges facing Singapore. We bring perspectives on the online consultation of the Statement of Cooperative Identity held with members in the Philippines.
