By Sundeep Kumar Nayak, IAS
On the backdrop of the G20 Leaders’ Summit at New Delhi, cooperatives from G20 nations should espouse Cooperatives for Climate Action (CCA) for meeting the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and Net Zero by 2050. Though G20 does not have any dedicated platform on cooperatives, climate emergency being cross cutting, cooperatives as collective democratic businesses, work towards meeting the goals. G20 is a continuum and, cooperatives should actively engage with G20.
G20 Members & Cooperatives
In addition to G20 members, each year, the G20 Presidency invites guest countries to take full part in the G20 exercise. Under the Indian G20 Presidency, the invited countries are Bangladesh, Egypt, Mauritius, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Singapore, Spain and the United Arab Emirates.
As a group, the G20 members account for two-thirds of earth’s population, 80 per cent of global GDP, and 75 per cent of world trade. The largest 300 cooperatives and mutuals in the world had a total turnover of 2,146 billion USD in 2022. There are about three million cooperatives in the world. In India the number is little less than a million.
The Brussels headquartered International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) has under its active membership large number of cooperatives from G20 countries. ICA has to deepen its engagement with the G20. India is home to some of the world’s largest cooperatives such as IFFCO, GCMMF (Amul) and KRIBHCO. They can strengthen cooperation among cooperatives to pro-actively on climate change mitigation.
G20 Theme and Cooperative Principles
Cooperatives with their seven fundamental principles, epitomize, the G20 theme under India’s presidency, “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” – “One Earth · One Family · One Future.” Agricultural, dairy, fisheries, banking and retail cooperatives form the bulk of cooperative action on the ground level.
At the close of India’s Presidency of G20 and its emphasis on SDGs is strategically important for cooperatives, in view of the 2023 Paris Summit for a New Global Financial Pact, the UN High-Level Political Forum in July, the SDG Summit at Heads of States Level under the auspices of the United Nations General Assembly in September, the December COP28 in Dubai, and the lead-up to the 2024 Summit of the Future.
One of the Seven Cooperative Principle is Concern for Community. There is need for an urgent and decisive action to reform the Global Financial Architecture to enable cooperative banking system play their role in the path to shift faster to a low-carbon world. The year 2023 already signifies Global Boiling taking place across the nations.
The world is facing an unprecedented set of events emanating from three interconnected crises where cooperatives should play more active role within G20. The crises are:
- a cost of living crisis stemming partly from the ongoing war and the COVID-19 pandemic;
- a developing country debt crisis following the COVID-19 pandemic and climate-related disasters, and,
- the climate crisis as the glaciers melt and storms and droughts intensify.
The G20 High-Level Principles
High-Level Principles (HLPs) adopted in G20 interactions aim at giving strategic direction to the activities. Cooperatives should get involved with G20’s collective and concrete efforts towards effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda, in all three dimensions of sustainable development which is an overarching focus of G20. The three dimensions of sustainable development are, social solidarity, environmental responsibility and economic efficiency. Some of the relevant G20 HLPs are: (i) putting sustainable development at the centre of the international cooperation agenda and leaving no one behind, (ii) digital transformation; gender equality and empowerment of women; (iii) capacity building and skilling, (iv) full, equal, meaningful and effective participation and leadership of women in decision making at all levels, (v) poverty alleviation as a key priority, (vi) universal health coverage, pandemic preparedness and strengthening the health systems, (vii) address the bottlenecks in financing etc.
The G20 Finance Track
Out of the Tracks of G20, the Finance Track issues are highly relevant to cooperatives. Some of them are:
- Mobilisation of affordable, adequate and accessible financing from all sources.
- Sustainable Finance Working Group (SFWG), International Financial Architecture Working Group (IFAWG) to urgently address the debt vulnerabilities.
3 Fully deliver on the goal of jointly mobilising USD 100 billion per year urgently for climate action.
- Urging developed countries to at least double their collective provision of climate finance.
G20 Green Development Pact
Discussions have taken place in G20 framework on a G20 Green Development Pact. It is worth considering by the cooperatives. Prime Minister Modi’s call for “LiFE,” Lifestyle for Environment aims to foster strong collective actions for powering sustainable development, climate and environment actions in an interconnected manner around the world. Cooperatives can re-orient the activities of their members around LiFE. The 2023 G20 Action Plan is a multi-year living document for promoting collaborations.
Digital Transformation
India has launched, in G20, the voluntary “Data for Development Capacity Building Initiative” for providing capacity building training for policy-makers, officials and other relevant stakeholders from developing countries. Cooperatives with their huge banking and credit network, should take active part in the transformation.
Sustainable, Inclusive and Just Transitions
Cooperatives should focus on key action points to strengthen international cooperation including North-South, South-South and Triangular cooperation for collective actions to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and accelerate the achievement of the SDGs by 2030. G20 has resolved to take actions that are in line with the SDGs through four thematic areas, namely, Economic and Social Empowerment, Bridging the Digital Divide, Environmental and Climate Action and, Women’s food security and nutrition. The Policy Committee of the International Cooperative Alliance should work towards expanding its engagement interface with G20.
Climate Smart Sustainable Agriculture
A large proportion of families across the world are dependent on agriculture and allied activities for their livelihood. Majority of them are part of one form of cooperative or the other. For example, 94% of farmers are members of at least one cooperative. Climate change is impacting agriculture and allied activities adversely. The G20 Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting held in June 2023 noted that sustainable agriculture and food production, food security programs and international trade are critical for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG2 zero-hunger and the progressive realization of the right to adequate food. Support to developing countries to enhance their capacity for sustainable food production, storage, marketing and loss reduction has to be centred around cooperatives.
The key challenges for agriculture include increasing agricultural production to advance food security and nutrition, adapting to climate change and reducing its contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss and soil degradation. This requires transformation towards resilient and sustainable agricultural practices harnessing science, and evidence-based innovative solutions, tailored and piloted in regional, country and local contexts. A mention may be made of IFFCO’s nano-urea liquid. Since G20 Ministers have resolved to collaborate in areas such as climate-resilient technologies, nature-based solutions and ecosystem-based approaches and foster better dissemination of existing traditional and local knowledge for sustainable agriculture, farmers’ cooperatives and mutuals should reorient their activities.
Cooperative Banking
The cooperative banking system should work in tandem toward a new financial system discussed in G20. It should drive financial resources towards climate action and meeting targets under SDGs. It requires rapid scaling up of investment in the low-carbon transition in different sectors including agriculture to safeguard the 1.5-degree Celsius target.
The crises have systemic roots. Only investment will change their course. New concessional lending in the global financial architecture should prioritise attaining the SDGs everywhere and building climate resilience in climate-vulnerable countries through cooperatives. The International Cooperative Banks Association should expand its activities to enable cooperatives access green finance in the context of SDG goals and climate action. Partnerships among cooperatives from most climatically vulnerable regions such as Africa, Island States, Coastal Regions should work with the governments, UN agencies and the G20 on green finance for cooperative banking system.
New Working Group
A new working group on Disaster Risk Reduction has been established under India’s Presidency to encourage collective work by the G20, undertake multi-disciplinary research and exchange best practices on disaster risk reduction. It is a fact that the G20 countries have a high level of exposure to disaster risk. G20 Leaders’ declarations have from time to time acknowledged the importance of disaster risk reduction and resilience. Cooperatives have been facing the brunt of disasters. The International Cooperative Alliance should expand its engagement with G20.
ICA & G20 Future Engagement
Cooperatives have become a huge support system for women, artisans, micro-enterprises, small and marginal farmers, dairy farmers, small fishers, small retailers etc in many parts of the G20 countries. Their role in meeting the challenges posed by climate change cannot be re-emphasized. The International Cooperative Alliance should expand its engagement with G20 in years to come, for meeting their common goals.
(The author is a superannuated member of IAS. He has been MD of National Cooperative Development Corporation. Views are personal.)