Philippine co-ops hold summit on gender and development

The Philippines's “National Summit on Gender and Development (GAD) in Co-ops,” themed "Inspiring Change for Women and Men in Co-ops,” will happen on March 25-26, 2014, Subic Bay, PH. 

This is the first time that the country's co-ops will hold a summit to tackle gender GAD. Participants in the Summit will get informed of GAD's important role in co-op growth and development, and how co-ops can meet the requirements of the memorandum circular on GAD mainstreaming in co-ops. The memorandum circular was issued in November 2013 by the PH government's Cooperative Development Authority (CDA). 

The national GAD Summit is being organized by the Asian Women in Co-operative Development Forum (AWCF) at CDA. Get more details from coopwomen.org and cda.gov.ph, or send an e-mail to gadsummit@coopwomen.org 

The Summit brochure/invitation is available here

GAD and gender equality make co-op operations and service even more sustainable

Gender and development (GAD) is important to co-operatives’ sustainability. GAD efforts of co-ops enable them to integrate gender equality that leads to even more economic and social growth in the co-ops. With gender equality, co-ops give attention to the needs and contributions of both women and men members. Equal opportunities given to both women and men help strengthen even more the co-ops and communities. International agreements and conventions advocate GAD and gender equality as important factors in development. The "Statement on the Co-operative Identity (SCI)" of the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) enshrines the value of equality and equity, and highlights the participation of both women and men in the co-ops. In the Philippines, laws, executive orders, and circulars stress the importance of GAD efforts in fulfilling the government's nation-building goals. The importance of GAD and gender equality is also emphasized in Memorandum Circular (MC) 2013-22, pertaining to “Guidelines on Mainstreaming GAD in Cooperatives,” issued by the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) on November 18, 2013. (See http://cda.gov.ph/images/Issuances/MCs/MC2013-22-Guidelines-on-mainstreaming-GAD-in-coops.pdf) CDA is the Philippine government’s lead agency in co-op development. MC 2013-22 aims at disseminating to the co-op sector the GAD mandate of the Philippine government to ensure the promotion and institutionalization of GAD and gender equality in co-ops’ policies, programs, and other activities.

In the Philippines’s private co-op sector, there are already gender-fair co-operatives that can attest to the economic and social benefits of advocating and practicing gender equality. These gender-fair co-ops also want to help other co-ops fulfill their GAD and gender equality objectives and needs. Thus some of them have together formed Gender Equality Resource Centers (GERCs) based in the Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao regions of the country. These GERCs’ gender focal specialists and advocates have themselves undergone intensive trainers’ training in gender equality and are also long-time co-op advocates and workers. The GERCs are ready to help fellow co-ops and other development agencies achieve greater sustainability in operations and service through gender equality.
 
Where are the GERCs in Philippine co-ops? 

GERC Luzon
Abra Diocesan Teachers and Employees Multi-Purpose Cooperative (ADTEMPCO)
Bulacan Federation of Cooperatives (BUFECO)
Ligas Kooperatiba ng Bayan sa Pagpapaunlad (LKBP)
Nueva Segovia Consortium of Cooperatives (NSCC)
Sacred Heart Credit and Development Cooperative (SHCDC)
St. Martin of Tours Credit and Development Cooperative (SMTCDC)
Contact persons: Ms Lani Babista lani_babista@yahoo.com and
Ms Divina Quemi (NSCC) nsccvigan2@yahoo.com

GERC Visayas  
Cebu People’s Multi-Purpose Cooperative (CPMPC)
Cordova Multi-Purpose Cooperative (CMC)
Don Bosco Network Multi-Purpose Cooperative (DBNMPC)
Dumanjug Multi-Purpose Cooperative (DMPC)
Lamac Multi-Purpose Cooperative (LMPC)
Mandaue City Public Market Vendors Multi-Purpose Cooperative (MAVENCO)
Metro Ormoc Community Cooperative (OCCCI)
Contact persons: Ms Edita Fernandez  Fernandezedita@yahoo.com and
Ms Rosie Agbay  van2baylon@yahoo.com

GERC MASS-SPECC
MASS-SPECC Cooperative Development Center (MASS-SPECC)
Aurora Integrated Multi-Purpose Cooperative (AIM Coop)
Bukidnon Employees Multi-Purpose Cooperative (BUGEMCO)
Notre Dame of Marbel University Employees Development Cooperative (NDMU Coop)
Tagum Cooperative (TC)
Zillovia Women’s Multi-Purpose Cooperative (ZWMPC) LOGO
(Note: Primary co-ops above compose the MASS-SPECC Gender Equality Committee.)

Also in the GERC MASS-SPECC:
Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology National Multi-Purpose Cooperative (MSU-IIT NMPC)
Paglaum Multi-Purpose Cooperative (PMPC)
Panabo Multi-Purpose Cooperative (Panabo MPC)
Pantukan Chess Club Cooperative (PCCC)
Contact person: Ms Bernadette Toledo nadettetoledo@yahoo.com.ph

Philippines holds national summit on gender and development in co-ops

Announcing: The National Summit on Gender and Development (GAD) in Co-ops, themed Inspiring Change for Women and Men in Co-ops
WHEN: March 25-26, 2014
WHERE: Subic Bay Travelers Hotel and Event Center, Subic Bay Freeport Zone, Philippines.
This National Summit for Philippine co-operatives is the first of its kind to be held in the country.  

http://coopwomen.org/downloads/summitbroch21k_upload_final.pdf (downloadable Summit brochure/invitation)

•    Summit Participants: Co-operators who want to enable change and make change work for the continuous development of Philippine co-operatives—Board of Directors; General Managers/Chief Executive Officers; Gender Focal Persons; Human Resource Officers; and Education Committee members.
 
•    Summit Organizers: Asian Women in Co-operative Development Forum (AWCF) and Cooperative Development Authority (CDA)
AWCF (www.coopwomen.org) is a resource center and advocacy body on gender and co-op development. Since 1990, AWCF’s activities in the Philippines and five other Asian countries have aimed at helping support co-operative growth through the advocacy and practice of GE in co-ops. 

CDA (www.cda.gov.ph) is the lead Philippine government agency tasked for co-op development. As a government body, it is mandated to practice gender equality (GE) tenets and, furthermore, it actually believes that GE is good for co-ops’ growth. With this belief, CDA actively implements activities to help bring GE to the consciousness, operations, and systems of co-ops.

•    Summit Objectives:
To let the participants—
1)    Know the importance of gender and development (GAD) that leads to the integration of GE in co-ops and, ultimately, to greater co-op growth and development—economically and socially.
2)    Know how co-ops can comply with the requirements of Memorandum Circular (MC) 2013-22, pertaining to “Guidelines on Mainstreaming GAD in Cooperatives.” On November 18, 2013, CDA issued MC 2013-22 that aims at disseminating to the co-op sector the GAD mandate of the Philippine government so as to ensure the promotion of GE and the institutionalization of GAD in policies, programs, and other activities in co-ops.
3)    Be inspired by the sharing in the Summit by key organizations and resource persons, and join other co-ops in helping other co-ops nationwide in becoming even better and stronger co-ops.

•    The holding of the National Summit on GAD in Co-ops comes at an opportune time:
The Summit comes on the heels of CDA’s issuance of MC 2013-22 (Guidelines on Mainstreaming GAD in Cooperatives). The MC is a solid action of CDA for its GAD mandate as a government agency, aside from its already ongoing GAD activities in its Central and regional offices. The MC is also CDA’s positive response to a Call for Action issued in December 2012 to CDA by gender-fair Philippine co-operatives.
These gender-fair co-ops had urged CDA to support GE mainstreaming and integration in the co-ops to bring about even greater economic and social benefits to the movement. Setting themselves as examples, these gender-fair co-ops had put forward that co-ops practicing GE—
1) recognize that women and men have equal rights, benefits, opportunities for advancement, services, and access to and control over resources; and have equal roles to play in development as participants and as leaders; and
2) know GE’s important contribution in enabling co-ops to perform their dual economic and social role in development.
Gender-fair co-ops are gender-fair workplaces. Gender-fair co-ops enjoy even more economic and social benefits that GE brings forth to co-ops and their members.

The Summit is also being held during the celebration of “Women’s Month.”

For inquiries on the GAD National Summit, please contact (mobile) 0917-8436390 (Globe) or 0922-4685546 (Sun); (landline) (02) 438-7666 (Philippines).
Interested Philippine co-ops, hurry and register now! The two-page National Summit brochure/invitation is available for downloading and printing on the link below.

Click here to download the "National Summit on GAD in Co-ops" brochure/invitation