A group photo of the participants and speakers at the workshop.

The inter-regional workshop on cooperatives in educational institutions was a joint event organised by the ICA-AP Committee on Cooperatives in Educational Institutions (ICEI) in collaboration with ICA Africa under the ICA-EU Partnership in Kigali on October 14, 2019. The objective of the workshop was to share knowledge between ICA members and other stakeholders about cooperatives in educational institutions such as universities, colleges, and high schools. It also aimed at sharing the technical know-how about the management of cooperatives in educational institutions with ICA members in the African region.

The workshop was attended by 51 participants from diverse backgrounds including policy makers, students, university management and staff, and youth from Rwanda, Tanzania, Botswana, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, DR Congo, Colombia, Somalia, Lesotho, Ethiopia, Ivory coast, Nigeria, Morocco, Ghana, Pakistan and Belgium. The workshop opened with addresses by Dr. Sifa Chiyoge, Regional Director ICA Africa; Dr. Jean Ngamije, Vice Chancellor of UNILAK; and Mr. Balasubramanian Iyer, Regional Director of ICA AP. It was followed by a brief presentation on the ICA-EU Partnership by Mr. Marc Noel, the International Development Director of the ICA-EU Partnership.

During the first session, the ICEI Co-Secretary Dr. Dongre, made a presentation on cooperatives in educational institutions in the Asia and Pacific region and gave examples of the work of campus cooperatives across sectors including housing, credit, consumer and multipurpose campus cooperatives from India, Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. This session  focused on the history and evolution of campus cooperatives in the region and the possibilities of different types of campus cooperatives. This successfully captured the audience’s interest and helped set the learning mood!

This was followed by showcasing of school and university cooperatives from Malaysia, Japan, Lesotho and South Africa. The participants keenly participated in this session and congratulated the presenters on their work. There were questions on modalities to set up these cooperatives, conditions necessary to  make them inclusive and profitable for members, and ways to make campus cooperatives withstand competition from private players and make them sustainable.

The afternoon session comprised of group work, where the participants deliberated on six questions:

• How to overcome legal issues for formation of cooperatives in educational institutions?
• What can be the role of teachers, students and apex cooperatives in facilitating cooperatives in educational institutions?
• What can be the role of relevant stakeholders and support structures in furthering the movement (model bylaws)?
• What kind of business development plans can be devised for cooperatives in educational institutions?
• What are the expectations from government to facilitate the formation of cooperatives in educational institutions?
• How to create awareness about cooperatives in educational institutions?

The group discussions were helpful in understanding the context of cooperatives in Africa and the possibility of setting up cooperatives in educational institutions in the region.

In the closing session, the participants shared their feedback on the workshop and noted that they would go back to their respective countries and explore the possibilities of promoting and setting up cooperatives in educational institutions. Dr Jean Ngamije thanked ICEI and ICA Africa for conducting the workshop and acknowledging it as an enriching experience for UNILAK and other participants.