ICA consultant lauds Lanka’s Co-op Movement

by Uditha KUMARASINGHE

Senior Consultant of the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) Rangan Dutta has commended the Government’s moves to promote the country’s Co-operative Movement at the ninth Asia Pacific Co-operative Ministers’ Conference at the UN Centre, Thailand.

The conference which began on February 27 concluded on March 1.

Dutta who participated in the conference had said that as a person who is committed to the Co-operative Movement he was impressed by the initiative taken by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to provide a series of concessions and other relief measures to develop the Co-operative Movement in Sri Lanka, Co-operatives and Internal Trade Minister Johnston Fernando told the Sunday Observer yesterday.

The Minister said the ICA Senior Consultant told the Co-operative Ministers of other countries who attended the conference that he could ascertain first-hand information on the significant progress achieved by Sri Lanka’s Co-operative Movement after his two visits to Sri Lanka.

Minister Fernando said Dutta also lauded the Mahinda Chintana policy framework introduced by the President and the State patronage given to develop the Co-operative Movement under Mahinda Chintana. He told the delegation that the Sri Lankan Government had provided much assistance to uplift the standard of the Co-operative Movement compared to the Co-operative Movements in other countries.

The Minister said the Government has granted a series of tax concessions to the Co-operative Movement on the President’s directive. Steps were also taken the write off the Rs. 2 billion loans in the Co-operative sector.

Another Rs. 1.8 billion loans in the Co-operative sector are expected to be written off shortly.

At present the Co-operative sector has grown into a major movement with a key network of countrywide Multi Purpose Co-operative Societies, mini and mega Co-op Cities and Co-operative Rural Banks.