ANGKASA Wants ICA-AP To Boost Efforts To Market Co-op Products, Services In Asia Pacific

KUALA LUMPUR, July 25 (Bernama) -- Angkatan Koperasi Kebangsaan Malaysia Berhad (ANGKASA) wants the International Cooperative Alliance Asia and Pacific (ICA-AP) to boost efforts to help market cooperatives’ products and services among Asia Pacific countries.

Its president, Datuk Seri Dr Abdul Fattah Abdullah, who is also ICA-AP vice-president, said comprehensive collaborations between regional cooperatives were very vital to increase cooperatives-to-cooperatives (C-2-C) market access.

“Asia Pacific cooperatives need to play a significant role in intensifying long-term collaborations, market access facilities and incentives capable of stimulating production and marketing of products and services in various business sectors,” he said in a statement today, adding that the suggestion was mooted when he attended the ICA-AP board meeting and an international workshop in Guangzhou, China.

The ICA-AP board meeting was attended by Asia Pacific cooperative leaders, including those from China, the Philippines, India, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Nepal and Sri Lanka, and started on Wednesday and scheduled to end today.

Abdul Fattah also stressed on the need to draft and finalise the direction of Asia Pacific cooperatives for the next five years during the ICA-AP Strategic Plan 2026-2030 meeting.

“The direction needs to be inclusive, sustainable and able to focus on efforts to raise public understanding about the cooperatives movement as a lifestyle as well as strengthening cooperative business at the regional and global level,” he said.

ANGKASA also stated its commitment to strengthening and expanding markets for local cooperative products at the global level, describing its active participation at the international level as Malaysia’s continued commitment to strengthen the cooperatives movement regionally and globally.

"It’s in line with ANGKASA’s role in expanding international networking to increase the potential of cooperatives from the aspects of business, development and economic growth, as well as the direction of development of the cooperative movement in the Asia Pacific region,” it said.

-- BERNAMA