The General Assembly,
Recalling its resolution 47/90 of 16 December 1992, in particular
paragraph 2 thereof, in which it proclaimed the first Saturday
of July 1995 to be International Day of Cooperatives,
Welcoming the report of the Secretary-General on the status
and role of cooperatives in the light of new economic and social
trends, A/49/213. especially the important recommendations contained
in section II of the report aimed at ensuring the best possible
means of dealing with the issue of cooperatives, taking into account
their broad significance in contributing to the solution of major
economic and social problems,
Recognizing that cooperatives in their various forms are
becoming an indispensable factor in the economic and social development
of all countries, promoting the fullest possible participation
in the development process of all population groups, including
women, youth, disabled persons and the elderly,
Recognizing also the important contribution and potential
of all forms of cooperatives to the preparations for and follow-up
to the World Summit for Social Development and the Fourth World
Conference on Women: Action for Equality, Development and Peace,
to be held in 1995 and the United Nations Conference on Human
Settlements (Habitat II) to be held in 1996,
1. Takes note with appreciation of the report of the Secretary-
General on the status and role of cooperatives in the light of
new economic and social trends;
2. Invites Governments, relevant international organizations,
specialized agencies and national and international cooperative
organizations to observe annually the International Day of Cooperatives
on the first Saturday of July starting from 1995, as proclaimed
by the General Assembly in its resolution 47/90;
3. Encourages Governments to consider fully the potential
of cooperatives for contributing to the solution of economic,
social and environmental problems in formulating national development
strategies;
4. Also encourages Governments to consider reviewing legal
and administrative constraints on the activities of cooperatives
with a view to eliminating those constraints that are not applied
to other businesses and enterprises;
5. Invites government agencies, in collaboration with cooperatives
and other relevant organizations, to develop programmes aimed
at improving statistics on the contribution of cooperatives to
national economies and facilitating dissemination of information
on cooperatives;
6. Invites the World Summit for Social Development, the
Fourth World Conference on Women: Action for Equality, Development
and Peace and the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements
(Habitat II), in formulating respective strategies and actions,
to give due consideration to the role and contribution of cooperatives;
7. Requests the Secretary-General, within existing resources,
to continue to provide support to the programmes and objectives
of the international cooperative movement and to submit to the
General Assembly at its fifty-first session a report on the implementation
of the present resolution.
94th plenary meeting
23 December 1994