ICA’s Global Conference and General Assembly was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 13-17 November 2017.

The theme of the conference was “Cooperatives: Putting People at the Centre of Development”. Various presentations from a number of speakers were made on the possibility of cooperatives to realize the "Sustainable Development Goals" (SDGs) raised by the United Nations. Delegates from JCCU including HONDA Eiichi – President, attended the meeting which was participated by approximately 1,800 participants from around the world.

The Global Conference before the General Assembly held from 15-16 Nov., composed of seminars and workshops under four themes "learn" "experiment" "network" and "explore". Many reports were presented and followed by exchange of opinions.

At the General Assembly held on November 17, the ICA president and global board members were elected. Mr. Ariel Guarco (Argentina·COOPERAR, the Cooperative Confederation of Argentina) was appointed as president, while under the support of the Japanese co-operatives, Mr. TORU Nakaya president of the Central Union of Agricultural Cooperatives (JA ZENCHU) stood as a candidate and won to become ICA Director.

In the Keynote Speech at the General Assembly, Dr. Linda Yueh (World Economic Forum Member) gave a lecture on America First, the rise of the middle class worldwide, international trend and issues. Also at the GA, HONDA Eiichi President of JCCU reported that Japanese co-operatives are working on' Hibakusha Appeal (International Signature Campaign) as part of the co-ops peace activities towards building a peaceful future without nuclear weapons. He therefore, urged peace loving co-operators to join the "Hibakusha Appeal".

On Nov. 14, Global Co-op Committee (CCW = Consumer Co-operatives Worldwide) held its general meeting, followed by election of the new executive committee members. Prof. Peter Stefanov President of Central Cooperative Union (CCU), Bulgaria and HONDA Eiichi, President of JCCU were elected as President and the Vice President respectively.

Prof. Peter Stefanov, in his inception speech shared his view of the role of consumer co-ops in recent times. He mentioned that “The challenges facing consumers co-ops in the world today are greater because of the extraordinary dynamics of new technologies, global crises, open markets, excessive trade and excessive consumption. In this context, co-operative leaders play an important role in preserving the essence of our business model, which provides adaptability and flexibility in solving many social problems and economic challenges and thus helps create a better world.” Reference: CCW 2017 GA Report. http://www.ccw.coop/news/87-CCW-2017- General-Assembly-and-Joint-ICAO-Seminar.html”.