No less than Tanzanian President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete launched the international year of cooperatives at the Mnazi Mmoja Grounds in Dar es Salaam on March 20th, 2012. The event was marked with the laying of the foundation stone of the Ushirika Tower, a 20-story building of the Tanzania Federation of Cooperatives (TFC). The President was joined by Jumanne Maghembe, MP Minister of Agriculture, Cooperatives and Food Security, Hassan Wakasuvi, Chairman of the TFC and other dignitaries. Official representatives from the UN, ILO andICA were also present to witness the launch. The celebrations were also marked by exhibitions where cooperatives showcased their activities.
Recognizing the historical and social significance the cooperative movement brought to Tanzania, Kikwete urged cooperatives to restore the glory of the movement in the country. He said that cooperative unions should focus on activities which enhanced their work and urged them to recruit committed leaders who would fight for the development of their members. Moreover, he also highlighted the need to review shortfalls and problems which led to the collapse of cooperatives in the past and learn to run the movement better this time around. And the government will provide its full support of cooperatives that would enable their growth.
Alexio Musindo, the Director of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) for East African Countries re-echoed the words of the ILO Director-General Juan Somavia stating that cooperatives empower people by enabling even the poorest segments of the population to participate in economic progress; and that they create job opportunities for those who have skills but little or no capital, and they provide protection by organizing mutual help in communities.
He also highlighted the partnership between the UN, the Government and the cooperative movement both on the Mainland and inZanzibar. The UN, through the COOP Africa Project and other UN Joint Programmes and has supported cooperative development activities in various aspects.
Courtesy:UN Cooperative News
