Welcome to the United Nations
The International Year of Cooperatives 2025 (IYC 2025) celebrations for Asia and the Pacific region and Japan officially kicked off on 19 February 2025 at the United Nations University in Tokyo. The hybrid launch event was co-hosted by the Japan Committee for the International Year of Cooperatives 2025, the International Cooperative Alliance - Asia and Pacific (ICA-AP), and the International Labour Organization’s Office for Japan. It brought together more than 700 participants, over 250 in person and over 450 online, including ILO constituents, cooperative leaders, policymakers, researchers, and young co-operators from Japan and the Asia-Pacific region.
Shinichi Takasaki, Director of the ILO Office for Japan, emphasized the ILO’s century-long support for cooperatives since 1920, noting their role in creating jobs, enhancing social protection, and building resilience amid rising global inequalities and crises. “As inequalities and divisions grow worldwide, and disasters and conflicts become more frequent, I hope that the 2nd UN IYC 2025 will be an opportunity for cooperatives to further demonstrate the power of solidarity,” he said.
Simel Esim, Head of the ILO’s Cooperative, Social and Solidarity Economy Unit and Chair of UN Inter-Agency Task Force on Social and Solidarity Economy (UNTFSSE), noted that in the last decade cooperatives have shown their ability to build resilience in times of crises, adapt and innovate in the face of rapid technological changes, demographic shifts, and environmental challenges.
She highlighted the role that cooperatives play in the Asia-Pacific region toward advancing food security, generating employment, improving livelihoods, and formalizing the informal economy. “The cooperative movement in Asia-Pacific is among the most dynamic in the world,” she said, calling for a conducive environment for cooperatives including enabling legal and policy frameworks, financing and business development services, education and awareness raising.
In her address, Esim underscored UN IYC 2025 as a pivotal opportunity to drive long-term change. “This is a moment to push for lasting policy changes that embed cooperatives in global and national development and sectoral strategies including agriculture, industry, energy and trade” she urged. “By working together, we can ensure that IYC 2025 is not only a milestone but a catalyst for deeper policy commitments and stronger cooperative ecosystems worldwide,” she concluded, advocating for concrete commitments from governments and stakeholders to maximize cooperatives’ potential.
Speakers present also called for sustained government support to promote cooperatives, including efforts to secure legislative resolutions. They emphasized the importance of global and regional integration of the cooperative movement, highlighting its role in fostering inclusive growth and addressing local challenges. The cooperative spirit was hailed as a driving force for building resilient, innovative societies, with a strong commitment expressed to advancing cooperative development through collaboration and policy advocacy.
IYC 2025 activity plans from countries like Iran and Malaysia, as well as Japan’s Ibaraki and Shimane prefectures, were presented at the launch, showcasing regional strategies to advance cooperative initiatives. Youth-led discussions, featuring voices from the National Federation of University Co-operative Associations (NFUCA) and the ICA-AP Committee on Youth Cooperation, called for greater inclusion of young leaders in the movement. The event also featured short films from cooperatives in Nepal, the Philippines, and Japan, illustrating grassroots solutions to socio-economic challenges and reinforcing the practical impact of the cooperative model.
The regional IYC launch in Tokyo builds on the global momentum that has been gaining momentum since the IYC 2025 global kickoff in New Delhi in November 2024. Throughout the year, cooperatives will continue to be championed as critical drivers of inclusive economic development, social equity, and sustainable solutions to pressing global challenges, with the Asia-Pacific region playing a pivotal role through national, regional, and international cooperation.
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Source: ILO