KUALA LUMPUR: The Co-operative Societies Act 1993 will be amended involving 96 original provisions in the act which would be restructured and improved.
Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development Minister Datuk Ewon Benedick said the draft amendment which is currently being prepared will be brought to the Cabinet before it is expected to be tabled in Dewan Rakyat next year.
“We expect as many as 200 new amendments (provisions) to be included in the act involving basic matters that have been agreed upon.
“These amendments are made to strengthen regulatory elements and ensure that cooperative legislation remains relevant to the current economic environment,“ he said at a press conference after chairing the National Cooperative Consultative Council (MPKK) Meeting Number 2/2024 here today.
Ewon said that among the main provisions that will be included in the act are related to the liberalisation of cooperative business and matters related to governance including in terms of regulating the registration of cooperatives.
He said the draft amendment was made based on the recommendations of agencies under the ministry through a survey conducted previously.
“After this we will engage with cooperatives across the country to get their acceptance of this proposal before we take it to Parliament to be tabled,“ he said.
Earlier, he chaired the MPKK meeting which was attended by the Malaysian Cooperative Societies Commission chief executive officer Datuk Rusli Jaafar and the heads of agencies under the ministry who witnessed the presentation of several papers, including the proposed drafting of the act.
The meeting, he said, focused on determining the direction of development of the national cooperative movement and aimed to improve cooperation between the federal government and the state government.
In the meantime, Ewon said the launch of the 2025 International Year of Cooperatives which was organised by Angkatan Koperasi Kebangsaan Malaysia Berhad (Angkasa) will be held this December.
“We hope that during this year’s celebrations many events can be implemented, including the National Cooperative Day (HKN) which we will hold in Melaka.
“Similarly, several conferences include proposals to hold discussions involving Asean countries to see how regional cooperation can be empowered to develop cooperative communities in accordance with the Asean chairmanship which will be led by the Prime Minister,“ he said.
He added that so far, there are 16,009 registered cooperatives in the country, with 455 of them being new cooperatives registered this year.
