Dr Bhagwati Prasad at the International Co-operative Alliance Global Conference in Cape Town, November 2013.

1. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
Presentation
By
Dr. Bhagwati Prasad
Ex-C E/NCUI
&
Vice-Chairman
Sahakari Awas Nirman Evam Vitt Nigam Ltd.,Lucknow
ICA Asia Pacific Youth Forum on 18th
July,2013,Buldana,Maharashtra,India

2. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
Definition and Meaning of youth
Stages of life
1.Infant, child (Child hood)
2.adolescent, young adult(youth)
3.adult, middle age , independent elder(elderly)
4.vulnerable elder, end of life(old)
Youth can refer to the entire time of life when one is
young, including childhood, but often refers specifically
to the time of life that is neither childhood nor adulthood
but rather somewhere in between.

3. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
Youth is an alternative word to the scientifically-oriented
"adolescent" and the common terms teen and teenager.
Other common terms for youth are "young person" and
"young people”.
Many countries also draw a line on youth at the age at
which a person is given equal treatment under the law –
often referred to as the "age of majority’. This age is often
18 in many countries, and once a person passes this age,
they are considered to be an adult.

4. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
Life expectancy
1. Life expectancy of whole population across22 Asian
countries- 72.2 years.
2.Regional divide persists in life expectancy(2010):
a. Japan - (83years) Longest life expectancy
b. Hong Kong, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, the
Republic of Korea and Macao, China- 80 years
c. Many countries in the Asia/Pacific- less than 70 years
d. Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, Myanmar and Indialess than 65 years

5. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
Definition
1. The UN defines ‘youth’, as those persons between the
ages of 15 and 24 years.
2. According to African Youth Charter, “youth” means
“every person between the ages of 15 and 35 years". Also
accepted by UNESCO.
3. Youth is the period between childhood and adult age.

6. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
4. Divide between stages of life and Life expectancy of the region
works out to be approx. 36 years age of youth. This may vary
from region to region and on Global level.
5. keeping in view the constraint of representation of youth and
practicalibility aspect, age of youth may be considered on the
basis of life expectancy of the region(72.2) and that of countries
with life expectancy of 80 which comes between 36 and 40.
6. ICA Asia Pacific Youth Committee may decide about the age limit
for youth to become a member of the committee taking into
consideration the above factors.

7. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
There are over 1.2 billion young persons in the world
today. It is estimated that youth make up 18 percent of
the global population and 25 percent of the total
working age population. The majority (almost 85%) of
the world’s youth live in developing countries, with
approximately 60 percent in Asia alone. The growth of
youth population is projected to reach its peak in 2035.
Close to 75 million young people are out of work, and
an increasing number of young people “neither in
employment nor in education or training” especially in
more developed countries.

8. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
Scope for youth in cooperatives
1. Social, economic, political and environmental
dimensions of youth development has become a more
central focus for decision-makers at all levels. Some
Examples:
a. United Nation declared International Year of Youth IYY-2011
with the objective of giving youth a chance to take an active
part in the decision-making of local, national and global
levels.

9. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
b. International Cooperative Youth Statement 2012 was
presented to United Nation during closing
ceremonies of International Year of Cooperative2012 highlighting the problems, challenges and
diversity of youth and urging upon the cooperative
community, governments, international
organizations, educational institutions, civil-society
and the media to deploy resources in order to
overcome these and enact communication
strategies that include education and research,
which are adapted to and accommodate the needs
of young people.

10. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
c. Youth Statement from the International Labour Organisation
emphasises that too many young people are experiencing a
dangerous mix of high unemployment, increased inactivity and
precarious work, as well as persistently high working poverty. The
cooperative form of enterprise provides young people a means to
create their own employment, find jobs with enterprises that
often align themselves with their own values, and participate as
member- owners of enterprises where their voice is heard.

11. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
d. Joint regional workshops of rural youth and young
producers’ representatives ,held by FAO, the International
Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the
International Movement of Catholic Agricultural and Rural
Youth (MIJARC) in Senegal, Sri Lanka and Peru in 2011
made the following recommendations for involvement of
youth in agriculture cooperatives:
i. Cooperatives should become youth-sensitive, particularly in their
representation and governance. Youth sections should be created
within mixed cooperatives, and gender inequalities should be
addressed to ensure the active participation of young women. The
creation of youth-only cooperatives should also be facilitated.

12. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
ii.Cooperatives should provide mentoring, guidance and advisory
services to their young members, so that they can become leaders
and farmer entrepreneurs, and can overcome constraints (e.g.,
through access to training, land and credit).
iii. Cooperatives should value indigenous/traditional agricultural
knowledge and practices, while also promoting innovations to
stimulate youth’s interest in agriculture.
iv. Cooperatives, donors and governments should formulate and
implement youth focused agricultural development projects and
programmes

13. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
v. Cooperatives, governments and the international community
should play a proactive role in raising the image/profile of
agriculture. Cooperatives can be a platform for sharing/
demonstrating farmers’ success stories, or linking young
women and men to educational institutions and agricultural
schools.
vi. Donors and governments should provide specific financial
support for the development of cooperatives that involve
and/or engage with young people.

14. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
e. ICA is engaged in formulating and implementing policies relating
to youth in cooperatives through committee on youth at
Regional and Global level. Chairman of these youth committees
are given direct representation on respective Regional & Global
Boards of Directors of ICA which is a testimony to the highest
priority being attached by ICA for the development of youth
through cooperatives.
f. Youth awareness and educational programmes about
cooperatives are being conducted by a number of countries by
organizing school and campus cooperatives or by establishing
cooperative schools.

15. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
2. Engagement with youth cooperatives gives an opportunity to
learn more about how cooperative business operates and also
provides the framework for a business project the youth may
desire to undertake.
3. Career opportunities in cooperatives are constantly growing
in processing, marketing, sales, distribution, research,
advertising, accounting, housing, insurance, banking, tourism,
electric service, credit service, public relations, law, computer
programming,and many more.

16. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
4. Through effective involvement with cooperatives, young people can work
together with governments, civil society and other stakeholders, to overcome
challenges of unemployment, underemployment, disempowerment and
disengagement.
5. Cooperative environment provides working conditions more favourable to
youth engagement than do other organizational forms because of its
democratic governance structure and organizational aims, which go beyond
profit maximization.
6. Encourage the engagement of young people with cooperatives as a viable and
promising option for their transition to full economic, social and civic
participation.

17. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
7. It also enables young people to explore different working
and leadership roles, and to get involved in decision-making
procedures and multi-stakeholder dialogue. Young people
can become creative in cooperative environments, which
allow them to develop their entrepreneurial and managerial
capacities.
8. There is need for cooperatives to engage with young people
in order to adapt to changing environments, sustain and
develop themselves.

18. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
9.Emphasis on the specific potential that exists in
developing countries for cooperative and youth
empowerment.
10. Cooperatives enable young people toi. build self-confidence through allowing individual and
team achievements;
ii. develop professional networks within and beyond the
cooperative sector;

19. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
iii.pursue avenues for productive self-employment through
the pooling of knowledge and resources, and improving
access to markets and productive resources;
iv.develop work ethics that are characterized by selfmotivation through allowing them to be the owners of
their work;
v.develop leadership skills for taking over responsibility
within and beyond the cooperative sector.

20. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
vi. explore and master various working situations
and develop problem solving skills which
institutions of formal education may often fail to
transmit;
vii.acquire general working and specific professional
skills relevant to future employment;

21. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
11. Young people have the opportunity to develop social
consciousness and attain a sense of self actualization.
Through their democratic governance, cooperatives also
expose young members to democratic values and culture.
The experience attained through engaging with an
environment of accountability and solidarity gives young
people the confidence to take on leadership roles in
various contexts, even beyond the cooperative movement

22. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
12. Cooperatives, motivated by sustainability and longterm development perspectives, can be more
resilient to crises and offer more stable work
environments. Furthermore, cooperatives provide
and facilitate employment, income and the
development of employment skills. Finally,
cooperatives are important agents of financial,
economic, community and human development.
;

23. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
Conclusion
In 2012, close to 75 million young people were out of work.
It is estimated that cooperatives provide 100 million jobs
world- wide. Although the exact proportion of youth in this
total is difficult to determine, cooperatives are clearly a
significant source of employment creation.
The scale and impact of the current youth employment
crisis on the future of young people and societies is a call
for immediate action. While cooperatives are already
playing a role in helping young people take their lives into
their own hands, there is great potential for further
development.

24. Definition, Meaning and Scope of youth in co-operatives
Thank you