Morocco/Béni Mellal: Celebration of International Day of Cooperatives

The regional delegation of the Office du développement de la coopération (ODCO) organized a communication meeting in Béni Mellal on Thursday to mark the International Day of Cooperatives.

Organized in partnership with the National Initiative for Human Development (INDH), the meeting provided an opportunity to take stock of the cooperative movement in the region, and to highlight the significant efforts made by women members of the region's cooperatives to improve their incomes and living conditions.movement in the region, and to highlight the major efforts made by women members of the region's cooperatives to improve their incomes and living conditions.

According to ODCO data presented on this occasion, the Béni Mellal-Khénifra region has 4,377 cooperatives, or 8.13% of the total number of cooperatives nationwide, operating in several sectors of activity.These cooperatives operate in a number of sectors, including agriculture (2884 cooperatives), crafts (842), trade and services (164) and a dozen other sectors, helping to combat vulnerability and create productive jobs.

These cooperatives have over 79,000 members, or 6.89% of the total number of cooperative members, with over 64,000 operating in the agricultural sector and 6,612 in the crafts sector.

A breakdown of cooperatives by province reveals a high concentration in Khouribga province, with 1195 cooperatives. The province of Khouribga is followed by Azilal with 1054 cooperatives, Khénifra with 734, Fkih Ben Salah with 713 and 681 cooperatives in the province of Béni Mellal.

According to ODCO data for Béni Mellal-Khénifra, the region has some 507 women's cooperatives, representing 6.88% of the total number of women's cooperatives nationwide. There are 231 youth cooperatives.

Speaking at the event, Taoufik Riad, ODCO's regional delegate in Béni Mellal-Khénifra, said that the meeting, which brought together a number of players in the field of social and solidarity-based eThe event, which brought together a number of players in the field of social and solidarity-based economy, was held in the wake of the International Day of Cooperatives, which highlights the major contribution made by cooperatives and their key role in the fight against precariousness.

The celebration of International Day of Cooperatives is an opportunity to pay tribute to pioneering cooperatives and to take stock of their achievements.The celebration of International Day of Cooperatives is an opportunity to pay tribute to pioneering cooperatives and to take stock of the actions of various partners, as well as to focus on the problems that stand in the way of the development of the regional cooperative movement, he pointed out.

Organized in partnership with the Aoujgal Eagles tourism cooperative in Béni Mellal-Khénifra, the meeting paid tribute to a dozen women members and presidents of cooperatives in the Béni Mellal-Khénifra region, which contribute to a more equitable redistribution of wealth, the elimination of poverty, the creation of productive jobs and the promotion of social integration.

A cooperative is an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations, through a jointly owned and democratically governed enterprise.

Celebrated under the theme "Cooperatives building a better future for all", International Day of Cooperativesratives highlights the current and historic contributions of cooperatives to a sustainable future, accelerating efforts to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.

This year's theme aligns with that of the upcoming Future Summit, a high-level event that will bring together leaders from around the world to create a new international consensus and decide together how to improve the present and preserve the future.

Source: www.mapexpress.ma/