The 2020 International Day of Cooperatives that falls on 4 July was celebrated at the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation in Nay Pyi Taw yesterday morning.
Union Minister for Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation Dr Aung Thu made an opening remark at the meeting that the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) had urged the cooperatives to give special consideration to work for addressing climate change through cooperation among the members of the cooperatives as per the theme “Cooperatives for Climate Action” and to cooperate with the cooperative communities in building the prosperous and more united economy.
He added that people nowadays are suffering from the disasters such as insufficient foods, environmental degradation and natural disasters as well as the plagues.
The Union Minister also said that the cooperative communities will have to perform to reduce inequality, disputes and challenges.
He said that there was a policy for climate change called “National Policy for Climate Change (2017-2030) in Myanmar and they were doing the best to provide resettlement and relief as well as to reduce the natural disaster.
Myanmar cooperative sector is being operated by 4.2 million of members and 39,929 cooperative departments providing financial support to the cooperative member farmers, the ability to buy the farming machineries by hire purchase system, promoting farming and assisting the farming services, producing the seed, supporting the input, and promoting the development of the cooperative in order to form the standard cooperative regions.
He also said that there were impacts on Myanmar’s agricultural sector due to Covid-19 and they were planning to perform three projects to develop the agricultural cooperatives by spending US$35 million from $200 million of the loan from World Bank for the National Food and Agriculture System Project.
He concluded that the cooperative works have developed across the world, in helping for the socio-economic sector of the people, and that it needs to work more in agriculture, livestock and manufacturing sectors of the cooperatives in Myanmar.
Afterwards, president of the Central Cooperative Society U Khin Maung Aye made a speech to honour the International Day of Cooperatives, and Dr Toe Nandar Tin, the member of Executive Committee of the Central Cooperatives Society read the formal message from the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA).
The event was closed by showing the video clip of the cooperative actions in honour of the 98th International Day of Cooperatives.
The event was attended by the Nay Pyi Taw Council member U Aye Maung Sein, the representatives of the parliament U Yan Lin and Dr Sein Mya Aye, Nay Pyi Taw Development Committee member Daw Sabai Htway, the permanent secretary, the directors and respective officials and the professors from the Universities of the cooperatives, the principal from the Colleges of the cooperatives and the presidents of the respective states and regions’ cooperative communities took part by video conferencing. — MNA
(Translated by Ei Phyu Phyu Aung)
