In the context of the UN High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), COPAC organised, for the second consecutive year, a Voluntary National Review Lab (VNR Lab). The VNR Lab “Cooperatives: Partners for Accelerated Sustainable Development”, that was supported by the Permanent Mission of Mongolia to the United Nations, took place on 11 July 2023 in a hybrid format at the UN headquarters in New York.
The event, whose title goes in line with this year’s CoopsDay theme – “Cooperatives: partners for accelerated sustainable development” – was a great opportunity to mark the International Day of Cooperatives (also known as CoopsDay).
The VNR Lab offered a platform for Member States and members of the cooperative movement to exchange ideas and experiences on the mutual collaboration for the achievement of the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development.
Moderated by COPAC members UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) and International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), the meeting was focussed on the contributions of a panel of experts consisting of H.E. Enkhbold Vorshilov, Permanent Representative of Mongolia to the UN; Mr. Patrick Kilemi, Principal Secretary, Ministry of Cooperatives and MSEs, Republic of Kenya; Ms. Agata Wozniak, Counsellor Migration, Employment and Social Affairs, European Union Delegation to the UN; Ms. Chitra Kumari Thamsuhang Subba, General Manager National Cooperative Federation of Nepal (NCF); and Ms. Elisabeth Philippe, Senior Manager, CSR and Media Relations, UNFCU.
The discussion brought inspiring concrete examples on how cooperatives are contributing to the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the reported countries, by not only improving the lives of the cooperative members, but by also facilitating social and economic transformations that turn into positive changes in the communities in which they are based.
Find more detailed information on the event here and here. See the pictures of the event here.
Learn more on the VNR Labs here.
Visit the CoopsDay website here.