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International Co-operative Day 2013: ’Co-operative enterprise remains strong in time of crisis’

International Co-operative Day (ICD) is celebrated annually on the first Saturday of July. The day has been celebrated by the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) since 1923.

July 6, 2013 marks the 91st ICD, and the nineteenth time it has been held since its recognition by the United Nations.

The General Assembly of the UN declared “the first Saturday of July 1995 to be International Day of Cooperatives, marking the centenary of the establishment of the International Cooperative Alliance.”

The theme for this year’s event is “Co-operative enterprise remains strong in time of crisis.” It is an apt theme when one considers how other forms of business have been troubled by current global economic struggles.

A message from the ICA about the day can be found through this link: http://ica.coop/sites/default/files/attachments/91st%20ICA%20International%20Co-operative%20Day%202013%20-%20EN.pdf [1]

A recent report by the International Labour Organization, entitled “Resilience in a downturn: the power of financial co-operatives,” notes that financial co-operatives have fared better than investor-owned banks in times of crisis. It can be downloaded via this address: http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/—ed_emp/—emp_ent/—coop/documents/publication/wcms_207768.pdf [2]

The messages from the United Nations and the ICA will be translated into local languages. These will then be distributed to media, co-operatives and all levels of government.

Radio stations and other media outlets should contact local co-operatives to document their stories and make their audiences aware of the movements, activities and contributions that co-ops make to the economic and social lives of their members.