The ICA welcomed a number of new members during the month of May.
The National Council of Cooperatives (OSZT) from Hungary, the Guangdong Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives from China, the Philippine Family Farmers Agriculture Fishery Forestry Cooperatives Federation (AgriCOOPh) from the Philippines, and Cooperativa Multiactiva de Ahorro, Crédito, Consumo, Producción y Servicios “8 de Marzo Limitada” from Paraguay have joined as new Full Members.
OSZT’s aim is to promote the formation and recognition of cooperatives in Hungary, and to serve, represent and defend the interests of cooperatives and their members. Its members include national-level associations of organisations and other organisations with a cooperative interest, consisting of 9 direct members, representing 500-550 cooperatives with 700,000-800,000 individual members.
The Guangdong Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives serves agriculture, rural areas, and farmers, acting as the provincial-level joint organisation for all supply and marketing cooperatives in Guangdong, China. It currently consists of 20 prefecture-level city cooperatives, 96 county-level cooperatives, and 2,139 grassroots cooperatives. It has developed 4,574 specialised cooperatives, 175 associations, and 2,154 legal entity enterprises, with a total of 31,904 business outlets.
AgriCOOPh provides full-value chain services to agri-fishery-forestry cooperatives in the Philippines, including capacity building, financial assistance, market linkage support, technology adoption, and policy advocacy to strengthen the operations of member cooperatives. It consists of 60 direct members representing 900,000 individual members, and is joining the ICA to strengthen advocacy for its members and collaborate with like-minded organisations worldwide.
8 de Marzo Limitada is a financial cooperative headquartered in Lambare, Paraguay, with 23 branches providing its 50,058 members with a wide range of financial and social services. It is joining the ICA to develop its knowledge of cooperative pedagogy in order to help its development, as well as to contribute to the global cooperative movement.
The ICA now has 312 member organisations of which 273 are full members and 39 are Associate Members from 105 countries.
Photo: Guangdong, China, the home of the Guangdong Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives
