Weeklong event to mark Co-op Day

KATHMANDU, MAR 30 -

The 56th National Cooperatives Day is being observed on Tuesday under the theme “Cooperatives for Autonomous Economy”. Cooperative Bank and District Cooperative Association Kathmandu are organising the weeklong event to spread awareness about the sector.

At a programme here on Friday, KB Upreti, coordinator of the organising committee, said anomalies in the sector can be minimised by increasing

awareness. Lately, the unregulated cooperative sector has come under increased scrutiny amid anomalies.

Upreti who is also president of the District Cooperatives Association, Kathmandu, said they would form a team comprising representatives from district cooperatives associations for the purpose. He said the team would facilitate cooperatives to invest in productive sectors, besides conveying information to the general public.

The sector has been identified as one of the three pillars of the economy. It has been helping improve living condition of the people by utilising disintegrated capital and other resources. However, there are also concerns about the conduct of savings and credit and multipurpose cooperatives.

Kedar Neupane, registrar at the Department of Cooperatives, highlighted the need for taking measures to reduce anomalies to ensure maximum benefit from the sector.

There are over 27,000 cooperatives in the country. The sector provides direct employment to 75,000 individuals and contributes over 3 percent to the GDP, according to the organisers.

Source: The Kathmandu Post