US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has praised two successful co-operatives in Asia and Africa that she visited last month.
At the beginning of August, she announced an expansion of a US government investment in a co-operative dairy programme in Malawi, Africa on a visit to Lumbazi Milk Bulking Group (MBG). MBG is one of 23 dairy producers assisted by the Malawi Dairy Development Alliance (MDDA) run by co-operative Land O’Lakes International Development.
Secretary Clinton said: “For the past decade, the United States has been supporting Malawi’s dairy sector, including this centre. And thanks to [Lumbadzi’s] work and the support we have given you, Malawi’s milk production has increased 500 per cent.”
The US Government will invest an additional USD46 million into agricultural value chains. Lumbazi MBG is not currently a co-operative, but it is expected to set up as one. Of the 23 MBGs, seven have now formally established themselves as co-operatives.
The MDDA project is a five year-public-private alliance enabled by the US Agency for International Development. During the event, Mrs Clinton provided the members of the Lumbadzi group with a pure-bred dairy bull named Emanuel.
Later in September she visited the Cooperativa Café Timor (CCT) operation in the Asian Pacific’s newest nation of East Timor. Secretary Clinton was greeted by women co-operative workers of the USAID-funded CCT co-operative project, which supplies Fairtrade organic coffee beans across the world.
CCT, a global trading company, began in 1994 with support from the National Co-operative Business Association’s CLUSA and Co-operative Business International. Starbucks imports this product, making it East Timor’s second largest export, generating around USD10 million per year.
Secretary Clinton was impressed with the product. On a tour of the production plant, and after tasting the coffee she said: “It’s delicious. Can I take some home to my husband? He loves coffee.”
She added: “The coffee operation has been self-sustaining since 2002. Now the co-op is able to provide health services to its members with some support from USAID, handling over two million patient visits since the country’s independence.”
The CCT co-operative is the largest private employer in East Timor with 23,000 famers, 350 full time staff, employing a seasonal workforce of nearly 3,000.
Picture: Secretary Clinton visits Lumbazi Milk Bulking Group, Malawi, Africa.
