Call to improve transparency and accountability in co-ops

KATHMANDU, March 26 :

President Dr Ram Baran Yadav has underlined the need to focus on qualitative growth of cooperatives sector rather than quantitative growth.

“The sector has seen remarkable progress after the 1990s. Cooperatives are working on different sectors like agriculture, small and cottage industries and hydropower, among other, involving hundreds of thousands of peoples,” President Dr Yadav said, inaugurating the 1st National Cooperative Congress that kicked off in the capital on Tuesday.

Referring to news regarding troubled cooperatives, President Yadav said, “Media are reporting different wrongdoings of cooperatives. If these reports are true, the trend could affect the principles and values of the cooperative movement,” he added. “The cooperatives should adhere to international norms and values of the cooperative movement.”
President Yadav also underlined the need to institute a regulatory mechanism to ensure transparency in the cooperative sector.

Speaking at the event, Dame Pauline Green, president of the International Cooperative Alliance, said the cooperative model of enterprise is one of the fastest growing business models in the world. “It is clear that much of the growth can come from country like Nepal where you have the active cooperative leadership and membership along with cooperative friendly government,” she observed.

National Cooperatives Federation in Nepal (NCFN) is organizing the congress in collaboration with the Ministry of Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation.
Speaking at the program, former Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai said cooperative plays a leading role in laying the foundation of economic development in the country home to small manufacturers and farmers. “Establishment of production and distribution oriented cooperatives is imperative for economic growth,” he pointed out.

On the occasion, ministers and government officials lauded the contribution of cooperative sector for economic growth. They, however, lamented lack of transparency and good governance in some cooperatives.

“With the growth in the number of cooperatives, we have felt the need of transparency and accountability in cooperatives,” Finance Minister Dr Ram Sharan Mahat said. “The need of the hour is to strengthen the monitoring and regulation to curb misconduct of cooperatives.”

Chief Secretary Leela Mani Poudyal said cooperative sector has become one of the requisites for economic growth. “Cooperatives help to mobilize the scattered capital and resources in the country for growth, helping to alleviate poverty,” he added.

Source: Republica