India International Cooperative Trade Fair in New Delhi
India’s Minister for Commerce and Industries Piyush Goyal has called for discipline and professionalism in the cooperative sector. He also recalled while addressing the closing ceremony of India International Cooperative Trade Fair (IICTF) in New Delhi on Sunday (October 13) that the foundation of the cooperative movement was laid by Sardar Patel.
Stating that there should be an international framework for expansion of the cooperatives, Goyal gave ideas on how indigenous and ethnic products produced by cooperatives can be marketed on e-commerce platforms.
An estimated one billion people around the world are members of a cooperative. More than 12% of humanity is part of any of the 3 million cooperatives in the world. Financial cooperatives serve 13% of the world population while agricultural cooperatives produce 50% of global agriculture output implying immense potential that exists in the sector for global trade.
At the 3-day IICTF, according to a government statement, 75 MoUs were signed. Thematic sessions were held on Globalization of Cooperative Trade, Cooperative Banking and Financial Inclusion, Empowerment of Youth and Women through Cooperatives, Agro-processing Ecosystem through Cooperatives, Agri-Tech and Climate Smart Agriculture through Cooperatives, Cooperatives as Cost Effective and Efficient Service Providers, Big Data and Cyber Security in Cooperative Sector, Dairy Cooperative Opportunities for Value Addition, and Trade and Farm Mechanization and Inputs Supply- Role of Cooperatives.
In line with government’s focus on programs like Startup India and Standup India aimed at young entrepreneurs with new and innovative ideas, National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) has formulated Yuva Sahakar – Cooperative Enterprise Support and Innovation Scheme 2019 which was also launched at the fair.
Sahakar Bharati, the single largest organization focusing on enlightening masses about the benefit of cooperative movement also showcased and launched its brand ‘Simplydesi’ which will provide good marketing and branding opportunities for cooperatives.
