The International Day of Co-operatives is an annual celebration of the cooperative movement observed on the first Saturday of July each year. Among others, the day is set to promote peace and to increase awareness on co-operatives, as well as strengthen and extend partnerships between the international co-operative movement and other related organizations. The slogan for 2017 International Day of Cooperatives was “Co-operatives ensure no one is left behind".

To celebrate this international anniversary, Japan Joint Committee of Co-operatives (JJC) and Cooperatives Japan held the 95th International Day of Co-operatives Forum on July 7 in Tokyo. About 450 participants consisting of co-operative staff and members nationwide, academics and the press attended the rally.

The first keynote lecture was given by Mr. INABA Masaki, Board Chair of Japan Civil Society Network on SDGs on the theme, "Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Expectations for Cooperatives – for the next generation in Japan and all over the World". He mentioned that in order to realize the SDGs, the power of the citizen sector is necessary, and expectations are raised about how NGOs, NPOs, cooperatives, etc. will make a new alliance.

The second keynote lecture was about the pioneering practice of Toyohiko Kagawa on the theme "Legacy of Kagawa Toyohiko - Love, Cooperation, Future - Learning from the Pioneer of Sustainability" by Mr. SUGIURA Hidenori Deputy Director of Kagawa Archives and Resource Center. The lecturer reported the relationship between Kagawa’s efforts and the SDGs.  Subsequently, a panel discussion was held with the theme "From Toyohiko Kagawa to SDGs".

In addition, opinions were exchanged on what kind of initiatives, Cooperatives as a mainstay of the SDGs, would like to advance and expand the network leading to the achievement of the SDGs.