Republic of Mauritius- International Day of cooperatives 2020 Cooperative sector needs to revamp itself, says Minister Bholah

He pointed out that Regional Cooperative Centres need to be centralised while adding that cooperative societies and federations have a significant role to play in the modernisation of the movement. He recalled that the Cooperatives Act 2016 gives more possibilities to a cooperative society which can now, through only one registration, diversify in various sectors.

Speaking about the crisis brought about by Covid-19, Minister Bholah highlighted that if cooperative societies were present in each region in Mauritius, it would have greatly helped the community. In that context, he announced the opening of a cooperative store in the south in one month’s time. The store, he said, will be similar to a supermarket and will make use of barcodes. Government, he added, is encouraging the setting up of such cooperative stores across Mauritius.

As regards the sale of potatoes, onions and garlic, he underlined that the cooperative movement is collaborating with the ministry of Agro-Industry and Food Security through the Agricultural Marketing Board for the distribution of these food items across the country.

The launching of a logo for cooperative products also coincided with the gathering of cooperators on that occasion.

International Day of Cooperatives

The International Day of Cooperatives is an annual celebration of the cooperative movement observed on the first Saturday of July.  The theme this year as proclaimed by the International Cooperative Alliance is “Cooperatives for climate action”.  The theme was chosen to support Sustainable Development Goal 13 on Climate Action.