A plan to put the Blueprint for a Co-operative Decade into action has been approved.
Representing the International Co-operative Alliance's members, which backed the Blueprint at last October's General Assembly, the ICA Board approved the plan at its March meeting in Moscow to create a roadmap for the Blueprint over the next four years until 2016.
A proof of concept scan will look at the state of participation within the co-operative movement; giving a particular focus on social media and other uses of technology in engaging youth and gender diversity.
While in sustainability, a similar study will focus on the movement’s economic, social and environmental commitments. Also, a thought leadership paper will be commissioned to look at 'Redefining Growth and Efficiency' to examine what growth should look like in co-operatives. This paper will also help to shape the co-operative position on the post-Millennium Development Goals.
Separately, a leadership group, named the Blue Ribbon Panel, will look at the advantages and disadvantages of existing means of co-operative growth financing, by sector, including tax and fiscal impediments; innovative thinking on local co-operative startups, e.g. crowd-funding; role of financial co-operative institutions in providing co-operative capital; and public channels for co-operative financing.
In Africa, the ICA will gather input for financial and agricultural co-operative development and will assess the viability of a Co-operative Africa plan with the African co-operative leadership. The Global Development Co-operative is also set to release its first set of loans in Africa.
On identity, last month it was reported the ICA Board has approved its role in being part of the shared co-operative visual image, which will form the basis of a redesigned ICA logo. The ICA will also be undertaking an internal communications project to ensure the co-operative community understands and embraces the Blueprint, which will lead to a wider, public-focused, communications campaign in 2014.
A 'Doing Co-operative Business' report will explore legal frameworks for co-operatives around the world and rank jurisdictions according to their enablement of and support for co-operatives. Meanwhile an initiative to build a network of Global Co-operative Parliamentarians will identify legislators sympathetic to co-operative principles.
Charles Gould, Director-General of the ICA, said: “This work will require resources, financial and human. A Leadership Circle of ten of the world’s leading co-operatives is being formed to serve as a resource nucleus. Beyond that, ICA’s members are being encouraged to contribute to a Blueprint Fund, which will provide the financial resources to advance these initiatives, resources not available from the regular operating budget of ICA. Most importantly, however, we will need co-operatives across the world to embrace the spirit and direction of the Blueprint in their own planning. Only this will allow us to have the impact needed to fulfill the 2020 vision.”
• To download the Blueprint for a Co-operative Decade, visit: ica.coop/en/blueprint.
