Comic Book--Gender Equality in Co-ops: Win na Win for Family and Business

Message from the Asian Women in Co-operative Development Forum (AWCF): Among the vital issues that confront women and men in the household, community, and workplace are gender equality (GE) issues, which include marginalization, subordination, gender stereotyping, multiple burden, different forms of violence, and similar situations. GE issues may also be present in the co-ops because people and relationships are at the very core of these organizations. The challenge for co-ops in the Philippines, where half or more than half of the membership are women, is to be gender-equal co-ops that will enable women and men to have equal rights, benefits, opportunities for advancement, services, and access to and control over resources; and equal roles to play in development as participants and as leaders. Co-ops as a business organization with social objectives can also expect good returns because being a gender-equal co-op is also good for the business. When the members grow economically and socially, so do the co-ops.

This comic book “Gender Equality in Co-ops: Win na Win for Family and Business” presents the story of Chona and Mike who overcame their marital, economic, and social problems, including GE issues, in and through the help of their co-op. The story’s characters are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons is purely coincidental. But the situations to be resolved in this story do happen in real life and to a number of co-op members who have similar or almost similar experiences in relationships, and also economic and social issues. And like Chona and Mike, these co-op members resolve their problems with great help from their co-ops. Their co-ops that have become champions of co-operativism and GE.

Published and distributed by the Asian Women in Co-operative Development Forum (AWCF), a resource center and advocacy body on gender and co-ops in Asia.

AWCF
Email: awcf@coopwomen.org Website: coopwomen.org YouTube: awcf gender forum

Published December 2010 for the “Promoting Gender Equality Among Co-operatives in the Philippines" Project under the "Advancing Civic Capacities for Effective and Sustainable Services to the Poor (ACCESS to the Poor)" Programme (2010-2012), supported by the Swedish Cooperative Centre (SCC), with fund support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA).

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