The ICA-AP Committee on Women and Committee on Credit and Banking organized a virtual side event at the NGO CSW68 Forum on 12 March 2024. Themed, ‘Impact of Cooperative Financing on Women’s Empowerment in Asia-Pacific’, it was the second such event at the NGO CSW Forum by the ICA-AP Women Committee. Expert speakers from cooperatives in India, Nepal, Japan, and the Philippines discussed how cooperative banks, credit societies and cooperative insurance businesses impact women, and contribute to SDG 5 on gender equality. The program was attended by around 90 participants from Asia, Africa, and Europe.

The Women’s Committee Chairperson Ms. Chitose Arai delivered the opening remarks. She highlighted the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day, ‘Invest in Women, Accelerate Progress.’ The theme focused on actions to reduce gender disparities and inequalities to create prosperous economies and ensure sustainable societies. She noted that in the context of this theme, the UN NGO CSW is discussing issues and actions that can be undertaken in different parts of the world. The Women’s Committee has taken many initiatives that resonate with this year’s theme. Since its inception, the Committee has focused on the capacity building of women cooperators and given them international platforms for their visibility, mutual learning, growth, and networking. She welcomed the guest speakers and thanked them for taking time from their busy schedules to talk about how cooperative banks, savings and credit societies, and cooperative insurance businesses are advancing women’s economic empowerment. She thanked the ICA-AP Credit and Banking Committee for co-organizing the program with the Women’s Committee.

Mr. Arvind Kumar Srivastava, ex-General Manager at the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), India delivered the keynote address. At present, he serves as a Consultant at NABARD Consultancy Services and is the Editor of Samarth Sahkarita magazine in India. Mr. Srivastava highlighted examples from South Asia of how cooperative banks have ensured women’s financial inclusion and contributed to women’s empowerment. A few notable examples were of the Mann Deshi Mahila Sahakari Bank in India, Mahila Milan Savings and Credit Cooperative in Nepal, and Bangladesh Samabaya Bank in Bangladesh, among others. He shared about the reach of these banks and schemes and policies for women. Some of the banks are operating in remote and hilly areas where private financial banks and micro-lending institutions are not present. Mr. Srivastava underlined the need to advocate for greater autonomy for cooperative banks and savings and credit societies. He also added that for a sustainable future, emphasis needs to be given to responsible governance, women-centric schemes and products, improved databases, technology, and professional human resources.

The thematic session, facilitated by Ms. Sylvia O. Paraguya, CEO of the National Confederation of Cooperatives (NATCCO) in the Philippines saw four presentations and a brief panel discussion by cooperative experts.

 Ms. Madhu Rayamajhi, Head of Business Development and Member Secretary of the Gender Equality Subcommittee, National Cooperative Bank Ltd. (NCBL) in Nepal discussed different initiatives taken by cooperative banks in Nepal to empower women. Some of these initiatives include - access to finance for women by providing financial instruments for small and medium-scale enterprises led by women, small farmers’ programs, subsidized loans, and fintech solutions adopted by cooperative banks that allow women to make transactions with ease. She shared about financial and digital literacy training imparted to women by cooperative banks. She highlighted some of NCBL’s initiatives to promote gender equality, such as the 50:50 ratio policy in primary cooperatives’ membership that provides equal opportunity to women to become cooperative members. She underlined the importance of 33% reservation for women in cooperative boards and provisions to form women sub-committees in Nepal that allow women to have collective bargaining power in cooperatives.

Ms. Anagha Kamath, Director of Mann Deshi Mahila Sahakari Bank in India discussed different products and services that are offered by her cooperative bank to women. Some of these include micro-savings accounts, micro-recurring deposit accounts, umbrella loans, joint-liability group loans, and weekly market loans, among others. She explained the role of women bank ‘sakhis’ or friends who assist members with digital banking and train women to use technology. She shared that the Mann Deshi Bank largely works with women who have not completed school. They focus on creating educational materials that are contextual and graphical so that women members can understand them easily. She also shared different initiatives taken by the Mann Deshi Foundation which is a sister concern of the bank. These include mobile skills training programs imparted via the bus travelling to different locations.

Ms. Sylvia Quinesio, Vice-President for Sales and Marketing at 1CISP in the Philippines introduced the Koop4HER insurance product tailored for women. Through a needs assessment study, 1CISP identified key areas of concern for women, focusing on life, health, and accident risks. The Koop4HER program was developed by her cooperative to address these needs. It includes holistic learning (H) with training in personal finance, risk mitigation, and women's leadership; entrepreneurship (E) providing livelihood solutions to women; and risk management (R) through two insurance products: 'Isabel' covering accidental death, disablement, medical reimbursement, and assistance for domestic violence, and 'Stela Juana' offering basic insurance with daily hospital income benefits. Eligibility for both products is for women aged 18-65.

Ms. Yuki Nishimoto from the Public Relations Division, Joint Management Department at CO-OP Insurance (Kyosai) Consumers’ Co-operative Federation in Japan discussed how Co-op Kyosai focuses on women’s needs in developing their mutual insurance products. She explained that as early as 1998, Co-op Kyosai launched the Co-op insurance TasuKeai Women’s Course (plan) to address medical insurance needs for female-specific diseases, addressing hospitalization and surgery needs. Over the years, the insurance plan has been revised to provide more benefits to women. In 2022, they further enhanced the plan by introducing hospitalization coverage regardless of illness or injury type. Additionally, Co-op Kyosai conducts the pink-ribbon campaign, raising awareness about breast cancer and supporting women's health beyond insurance.

The presentations were followed by a panel discussion on why financial cooperatives are a preferred choice for women amidst the growing presence of private institutions. Mr. K.K. Ravindran, Chairperson, ICA-AP Committee on Credit and Banking and Managing Director, National Cooperative Agriculture and Rural Development Banks' Federation Ltd. (NAFCARD) in India; Ms. Elenita V. San Roque, CEO, Asian Confederation of Credit Unions (ACCU) in Thailand; and Ms. Sylvia Quinesio shared their views. Some of the key discussion points on why women prefer cooperatives are –

• Financial inclusion for women who are excluded from traditional financial systems, particularly rural and vulnerable women.
• Opportunity for ownership and participation which assures women and builds their confidence.
• A supportive environment for women members where they feel valued and empowered.
• Flexible services and customized solutions for women such as small-scale loans.
• Easy communications and negotiations because women members in a cooperative belong to similar backgrounds and understand each other’s needs.
• Financial dealings, transactions and claim settlement processes are faster and easier as compared to other institutions because cooperatives operate like a close-knit community and people know each other.
• Educational and learning programs for women.

The panelists underlined the importance of adopting digitalization and technology in cooperative banks and credit societies as the competition from the private sector is fierce. They also stressed that cooperative organisations need to collaborate and work in solidarity for the benefit of cooperative members at large. Some commonly observed emerging trends in the region include –

• Private institutions are expanding into rural markets, posing new competition for cooperatives. Cooperatives need to take suitable measures to face this growing competition.
• Cooperatives are witnessing a rise in female participation due to added business services aimed at enhancing women's entrepreneurship skills.
• Women are increasingly assuming leadership roles within cooperatives.
• The widespread adoption of digital technology, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, presents an opportunity for cooperatives to innovate and enhance member services through digital platforms.

The panelists noted that the future of cooperatives in the banking, finance, and insurance sectors is bright and will continue to have a profound impact on women. Some new types of non-banking financial services that cooperatives can look at are investment cooperatives and pension cooperatives.

Concluding the program, Mr. K. K. Ravindran presented a vote of thanks. He noted that the lectures and presentations by the guest speakers were very enriching. Addressing gender inequalities is not just to attain social equity but to promote sustainable economic growth in countries. Women contribute significantly to economic growth and development, and systematic investment in developing women’s capacities and giving them opportunities is important to accelerate progress. He thanked the speakers for joining the program and declared the program officially closed with a group photo.