UN Highlights Role of Cooperative Enterprises in Sustainable Development

Cooperatives constitute a critical part of the world economy. Operating across all sectors of the economy, cooperatives provide 100 million jobs worldwide – 20 percent more than multinational companies, according to the 2011 figures from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the UN International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) and the UN World Food Program (WFP).

To mark the International Day of Cooperatives on July 5, the United Nations has brought into focus the key role that cooperative enterprises can play in economic development, environmental protection and social justice. The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a message that cooperatives are especially important to agriculture, food security and rural development.

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Vikas is a staff writer for the Sustainable Development news and editorial section on Justmeans. He is an MBA with 20 years of managerial and entrepreneurial experience and global travel. He is the author of "The Power of Money" (Scholars, 2003), a book that presents a revolutionary monetary economic theory on poverty alleviation in the developing world. Vikas is also the official writer for an international social project for developing nations "Decisions for Life" run in collaboration between the ILO, the University of Amsterdam and the Indian Institute of Management.