International Cooperative Day (02/07)

Every first Saturday in July, International Day of Cooperatives is celebrated, established by UN General Assembly resolution № 47/90 of December 16, 1992.

The day of celebration was chosen to coincide with the already existing International Day of Cooperatives of the International Cooperative Alliance, which has been celebrated since 1923. The International Cooperative Alliance itself (English. International Co-operative Alliance) — is an association of organizations with 760 million cooperative members in 100 countries.

Then in 1992, the UN Assembly, recognizing that cooperatives were becoming one of the necessary factors for socio-economic development, invited governments, international organizations, specialized agencies and national and international cooperative organizations to actively celebrate this Day and recommended that during its implementation they promote the dissemination of information about cooperatives; highlight the relationship between the goals and objectives of the UN and the international cooperative movement; emphasize the movement's contribution to solving the main problems facing the UN.

The scale of the cooperatives' activities ranges from small and modest private enterprises to large companies with a multimillion-dollar turnover. Currently, more than 12% of the world's population are members of 3 million cooperatives, which in turn provide 280 million jobs worldwide (10% of the world's working population).

Operating around the world, in a wide variety of economic sectors, cooperatives have proven to be more resilient to crises. They promote economic engagement, combat environmental degradation and climate change, create decent jobs, promote food security, preserve financial capital in local communities, create ethical value chains and, by improving material conditions and human security, contribute to building a better world.

Therefore, the goal of International Cooperative Day — is to attract global attention to cooperatives and promote greater partnerships between the international cooperative movement and other actors in international law, including governments and non-governmental organizations at all levels.

It should also be noted that every year the Cooperative Day events are dedicated to a specific topic. Thus, over the years they were held under the mottoes: «Contribution of cooperatives to world food security», «Public policy and cooperative legislation», «Progress of cooperatives in the third millennium», «Cooperatives in the service of peacebuilding», «Cooperative values and principles for social responsibility of corporations», «Cooperatives and women's empowerment», «Cooperative enterprises are building a better world», «Cooperative movement for achieving sustainable development for all», «Choose cooperatives, choose equality», «Ensuring community sustainability through the cooperative movement», «Cooperatives and decent work», «Cooperatives build a better world», etc.

In addition, in order to draw attention to the main world problems and to encourage the most important activities of cooperatives, 2012 was declared by the UN General Assembly as the International Year of Cooperatives. And to commemorate the year, many countries hosted various events aimed at raising citizens' awareness of cooperatives and finding new ways to use their contribution to the socio-economic development of society.

Historical background

The beginning of the modern cooperative movement can be considered the initiative of a small group of weavers who created the first consumer cooperative in the English city of Rochdale in 1844. Thus, the «Society of Just Rochdale Pioneers» took the first step towards workers gaining economic freedom and independence.

Half a century later, in 1895, the International Cooperative Alliance was created in London, becoming one of the first non-governmental organizations to work closely with the UN after the latter was founded in 1945.

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