This year, the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) is celebrating the International Day of Cooperatives (CoopsDay) on 3rd July with the theme “Rebuild Better Together.” Cooperatives around the world are showcasing how they are meeting the COVID-19 pandemic crisis with solidarity and resilience and offering communities a people-centred and environmentally just recovery.

To mark CoopsDay, this issue focuses on “Rebuild Better Together in Asia-Pacific.” Since the beginning of COVID-19 outbreak, cooperatives in the Asia-Pacific region have shown cooperation and solidarity to their members and supported their communities.

ICA-AP President, Mr. Li Chunsheng congratulating cooperatives on the occasion said, “With the relevance of cooperatives greater than any time, we shall pool our collective wisdom and efforts to face the new circumstances, and together we can rebuild better!”  

Rebuild Better Together according to Mr. Balasubramanian Iyer, Regional Director, ICA-AP meant, “We can rebuild battered economies; make it better for the community and environment; and while individually vulnerable, can do more together.”

We present a conversation with Ms. Roz Henry, Chief Executive Officer, Cooperative Business New Zealand (CBNZ), where she discusses how New Zealand cooperatives fought COVID-19 pandemic and how they are building back. We hear from Fairtrade International and Aflatoun International about their contribution and strategies to a just recovery. We also bring you the perspectives of cooperatives in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region on how the Statement of Cooperative Identity is guiding their day-to-day operations.