On 2nd July, the ICA Committee on Consumer Cooperation for Asia and Pacific (ICA-AP Consumer Committee) organised a Regional Webinar on Cooperatives Contribution to Local Communities in collaboration with the Japanese Consumers’ Co-operative Union (JCCU).

The webinar aimed to introduce the activities of cooperatives in the Asia-Pacific region and their contribution to local communities. The webinar also helped the committee member organisations in deepening their understanding of cooperative identity. 183 participants from 77 organizations in 14 countries (India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Republic of Korea, Kyrgyz Republic, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Palestine, The Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand) attended the webinar.

Mr. Amano Haruyoshi, Chair of the ICA-AP Consumer Committee and Manager of the International Department of JCCU and Mr. Balasubramanian Iyer, Regional Director of ICA-AP delivered the opening addresses.

Mr. Tanno Junichi, Director & Development and Sales Manager, Tohoku Cooperative Business Development Co., Ltd., Japan presented the organization's contribution to the reconstruction and the revitalization of the Tohoku region which was severely damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011. 

Ms. Juhee Lee, International Team Manager, SAPENet Development Center, iCOOP Korea introduced a variety of activities undertaken by the organization for the community. These included response to the Covid-19 pandemic, disaster management response, climate action, and healthcare for members using their medical facilities.

Mr. Dudz Samson, Brand consultant, C&S Co-op Supermart, VICTO National, the Philippines explained VICTO National's effort to expand the new generation stores "C&S Coopmart". These stores helped their members and communities with the provision of low-price products as well as disaster relief donations during the pandemic.

Mr. Surendra Shridhar Karhade, General Manager, Sahakari Bandar, India spoke about various activities undertaken by his organisation like natural disaster relief, donations, tree plantation, and recycling projects. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they also carried out RT-PCR testing and vaccination drives for their employees and members.

In the feedback survey, many participants mentioned that the webinar provided insights on how cooperatives reached out and can reach out to local communities. ICA-AP Consumer Committee and JCCU are planning to conduct a similar webinar in September 2021.