A cooperative is an organisation owned, controlled and democratically run by its members to achieve shared economic, social and cultural interests. In Malaysia, the cooperative movement in Malaysia can be traced to the start of the 20th century. Today, the sector has grown significantly with over 14,600 cooperatives and 6 million members nationwide. At the helm of this movement sits ANGKASA, the national apex cooperative body. President Datuk Abdul Fattah Abdullah reveals his hopesof how ANGKASA will lead the way in helping the sector secure a spot in the nation’s economic big leagues and play definitive role in its socio-economic growth.
The formation of ANGKASA in 1971 set the wheels in motion for a more united and robust cooperative movement in Malaysia. As the apex cooperative body, it is entrusted with uniting and developing cooperative businesses and representing the movement locally and internationally.
With the soon-to-be-implemented Malaysian Cooperative Transformation Plan 2021-2025, the sector is set to play a larger role in Malaysia’s transition towards an inclusive and high-income nation. And the onus lies on ANGKASA to provide the mechanisms and much-need leadership to empower its member cooperatives through innovative solutions and strategies.
Having served as President for eight years, Datuk Abdul Fattah has been instrumental in the formulation of ANGKASA’s Strategic Plan. Developed in 2017, it encompasses four strategic pillars in the areas of economy, ecosystem, governance and innovation for the organisation until 2050. The Plan aligns with the organisation’s aspirations to become a leading Apex Cooperative Body in ASEAN.
Stimulating the Domestic Sector
In 2019, the cooperative sector contributed RM45 billion or approximately 4 percent to national GDP, proving that it is far from being a marginal movement. Datuk Abdul Fattah reveals, “Domestically, our goal is to increase the cooperative sector’s contributions to GDP to RM60 billion by 2025 and RM100 billion by 2050.” This is in line with one of ANGKASA’s core responsibilities which isto stimulate and develop cooperative businesses in the country.
One way to achieve this is through the Cooperative Empowerment Project (CEP), which is part of ANGKASA’s Strategic Economic Masterplan. The CEP aims to enhance cooperatives’ involvement in eight high-impact sectors – namely retail and wholesale, tourism and healthcare, innovation and technology, agriculture, plantations, community development and financial services development.
One such initiative is the Supply for Basic Goods Project (BA100) which was introduced in June 2019, aimed to help offset the rising costs of living. As cooperatives are run by their members, the government believed that the sector can play an important role in the provision of affordable basic necessities to the public, especially within the B40 community.
Under this programme, ANGKASA will make bulk purchases from suppliers directly to retailers, cutting the middleman and lead to cost efficiencies. “Under this directive, we plan to create 3,000 grocery stores run by cooperatives to maximise public access to these outlets,” Datuk Abdul Fattah explains.
Within CEP’s framework, ANGKASA will explore businesses that do not generally fall within the risk appetite of member cooperatives. “After ascertaining the economic viability of the project, we will work with the cooperative during what we call the incubator process. Once the groundwork has been set, we will hand over the project to the cooperative to implement,” he explains.
“The objective is to help cooperatives to penetrate these sectors, and for them to play an active role in the nation’s economy together with the public and private sectors,” Datuk Abdul Fattah remarks.
Spreading Its Wings
ANGKASA is entering into the next phase of its Strategic Development Plan in 2021, which involves enhancing its position as an Apex Cooperative Body within a globalised world. Datuk Abdul Fattah believes that for Malaysian cooperatives to succeed, ANGKASA has to become a key player on the international level.
This is achieved through active participation in global cooperative networks such as the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), International Cooperative Alliance Asia Pacific (ICA-AP), ASEAN Cooperative Organisation (ACO) and Apex Cooperative Bodies in other countries.
Datuk Abdul Fattah sits on the board of the ICA-AP where he also serves as the Chairman of the Committee on Trade and Business. In addition to this, he is also the President of ACO. The majority of ANGKASA’s board members also hold prominent positions in international organisations. For instance, the Deputy President of ANGKASA, Datuk Kamarudin Ismail is an ICA Board Member.
“There are over 1 billion cooperative members and 3 million unit cooperatives globally. The cooperative sector is by no means small,” Datuk Abdul Fattah stresses. “So our goal is to facilitate networking between Malaysian cooperatives with those in other countries in various business activities.”
ASEAN alone is home to 60 million cooperative members – 10 times the amount in Malaysia. Strengthening international participation will broaden market opportunities and serve as an incentive for cooperative businesses to improve their product and service offerings. Datuk Abdullah Fattah notes, “If one cooperative member in ASEAN were to use one bottle of soy sauce from Malaysia, we have 60 million bottles ready to be sold to the market.”
Access to this international network of cooperatives provides avenues for ANGKASA to engage and enhance cooperative trade, bridging Malaysian cooperatives with this immense consumer market in the region and globally.
50 Years of Excellence
Come 21 May 2021, ANGKASA will be celebrating its Golden Jubilee. “If we were to compare ANGKASA with a person, it has reached a state of maturity and experience,” Datuk Abdul Fattah states. Thus, he is confident that the organisation is well-positioned to play a pivotal rolein the cooperative sector’s growth, and thus driving the economic development of the country
“There are three types of cooperatives,” Datuk Abdul Fattah explains. A primary cooperative consists of 50 individual members. A consortium of primary cooperatives makes up a secondary cooperative, whereasa tertiary cooperative, like ANGKASA, is a collective of secondary cooperatives.
For this reason, the cooperative sector consists of individuals of different races, religions, economic background and industry. “It is like running a country within a country,” Datuk Abdul Fattah remarks.
Moving forward, Datuk Abdul Fattah hopes that the cooperative ecosystem can be further developed. He notes, “ANGKASA will continue to strengthen our relationship with all our stakeholders – our members, the Cooperative Commission, Government and our partners locally and internationally.”
The nature of cooperatives that is community-based and people-centric makes it integral in many economies for rural development, increasing standards of living and poverty alleviation. It is this firm belief in the value of the cooperative movement to the country that fuels ANGKASA’s purpose. And with a cohesive strategy and leadership, ANGKASA will not stop until its vision is fulfilled.
