Permanent Mission of India
New York
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Special Commemorative Event

Cooperatives and Sustainable Development: Maintaining momentum
and exploring new avenues

English transcript of the video message by Hon’ble Amit Shah,
Minister of Home Affairs and Cooperation
28 July 2025

Namaskar!

On behalf of the 1.4 billion citizens of India, I extend my heartfelt greetings to all of you on the occasion of the global celebration of the "International Year of Cooperatives 2025." The theme of this event, "Cooperatives and Sustainable Development: Keeping the Momentum and Exploring New Pathways," reflects that the idea of cooperation is not only relevant in today's modern world but is also essential for sustainable and inclusive development.

I firmly believe that the principles of cooperatives, their values, and their people-centric approach make them one of the most impactful models of human-centered development. Cooperatives not only meet the needs of the present generation but are continuously working to secure opportunities for the generations to come.

In India, cooperation is a vibrant and community-driven system that envelopes every sector - from agriculture to finance, from consumption to construction, and from rural empowerment to digital inclusion through mutual collaboration and democratic participation. Its unique strength lies in the fact that it delivers benefits at the local level while also becoming a powerful medium for providing dignified livelihoods in rural and underdeveloped areas. It gives me immense pleasure to state that, through cooperation, women, youth and marginalized sections of Indian society have today become active participants and stakeholders in the journey of national development. It is not necessary for one to have capital- if there is confidence to work hard, then Cooperation is a medium that can help even people with minimum capital attain prosperity. Cooperation is the force that brings together the strength of individuals and transforms it into the collective strength of society.

The setting up of the Ministry of Cooperation in 2021, under the visionary leadership of Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji, has proven to be a historic and decisive step. Today, over 840,000 cooperative societies in the country have more than 320 million members actively engaged. Cooperation is laying a strong foundation of service, self-reliance, employment, and innovation, ensuring that every Indian becomes both a participant in and beneficiary of development. This model is offering a clear and strong identity to India's concept of inclusive development on the global stage.

For thousands of years, cooperation has been the soul of Indian values. It is a cultural consciousness based on the fundamental principles of partnership, transparency, and social justice, guiding us from the path of "I" to "we." Just as a family works together for each other's well-being, cooperation is also a testament to the power of collective strength. The Prime Minister of India, by giving the mantra of "Sahkar Se Samriddhi" (Prosperity through Cooperation), has transformed cooperation into people's movement. Today, this movement has reached every corner of India, empowering every village, every woman, every youth, and every farmer.

India has recently established the Tribhuvan Sahkari University, which will serve as a hub for education, research, innovation, and leadership development of national-level in the cooperative sector. Alongside this, the formulation of the National Cooperation Policy marks a historic step toward making the cooperative movement more transparent, accountable, and future-oriented.

India's world-largest grain storage plan is being implemented through cooperatives. This initiative not only strengthens food security but also ensures organized markets and increased prices for farmers.

To make cooperative products globally competitive, India has set up three multi-state cooperative societies: Bharatiya Beej Sahkari Samiti Limited (BBSSL), National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL), and National Cooperative Exports Limited (NCEL). The objectives of these societies are to provide farmers with direct access to global markets, quality inputs, branding, marketing and a fair share in export profits. These institutions represent powerful steps toward transforming producers from local to global.

In India, cooperatives have now gone beyond their traditional boundaries and have become a medium for innovation and self-reliance in areas such as digital services, healthcare, education, energy, organic farming, and financial inclusion.

Technological innovation is making cooperatives more inclusive today. When we speak of sustainable development today, cooperatives are emerging as an effective medium to embody the core principles of circular economy. Cooperative institutions are promoting models based on reuse, recycling, and collective use of resources. Numerous examples, like organic farming, community biogas plants, and waste management prove that cooperation is not just a tool for financial inclusion but also facilitates environmental stability and resource efficiency.

At the inauguration of the International Year of Cooperatives 2025 held last November in New Delhi, Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji had said, "India believes that Cooperatives can bring new energy to global collaboration. Especially for the Global South, where special development models are needed, Cooperation can play a vital role. Therefore, we must move forward with new ideas and new pathways of global cooperation."

With this same spirit, India today reaffirms from this global platform its resolve to continue working together, through cooperation, for an inclusive, sustainable, and human-centered development.

Wishing you all the best for the Cooperative Year

Thank you.