Kuala Lumpur: The cooperative movement within ASEAN member countries plays a key role in strengthening the regional economy and significantly contributing to Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Entrepreneur and Cooperatives Development Minister Datuk Ewon Benedick stated that as of December last year, the Malaysian cooperative movement recorded a turnover of RM68.2 billion, with assets totalling RM173.3 billion. He emphasized the need for the cooperative network to expand to include cooperatives from ASEAN member countries, allowing the turnover to extend beyond the domestic market and reach international markets. Ewon expressed his vision for cooperatives to develop capabilities similar to large national companies that penetrate international markets with their products and services. He shared these insights after officiating the ASEAN Cooperative Dialogue (ACD 2025).
Datuk Seri Dr Abdul Fattah Abdullah, Asean Cooperative Organisation (ACO) president and Angkatan Koperasi Kebangsaan Malaysia Berhad (Angkasa) president, was also present at the event. Ewon elaborated on the participation of Malaysian cooperatives and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in a trade expo in Saudi Arabia last year as part of efforts to strengthen the cooperative movement. He announced plans for participation in several expos, including one in Osaka, Japan next month, and expressed a desire for Malaysia’s involvement to extend beyond large companies and SMEs to include cooperatives.
Under the Malaysian Cooperative Policy (DAKOM) 2030, a target for increased revenue by 2030 has been set. Ewon believes this goal is achievable and should not be confined to the domestic market. He stressed the importance of encouraging, assisting, guiding, and fully supporting cooperatives in penetrating international markets. During a bilateral meeting with Timor Leste counterpart Araenio Pereira Da Silva, Ewon mentioned Timor Leste’s hope for cooperation in cooperative capacity development to be formalized through a memorandum of understanding.
Meanwhile, Abdul Fattah highlighted one of the key resolutions of ACO 2025, which aims for ACO to gain recognition as the official platform for the cooperative movement. This resolution will position cooperatives as the third sector contributing to ASEAN’s socio-economic development. It will be finalized and submitted to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim at the ASEAN Summit at the month’s end.
The two-day ACD 2025, organized by Angkasa with the full support of the Ministry of Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development, brings together key cooperative bodies from across the ASEAN region.