Co-ops’ ‘Concern for the Community’ come alive in battling COVID-19

As organizations locally rooted and strongly connected with the communities, co-ops show their support and concern for the people amid COVID-19 crisis through various initiatives. Diaspora partner cooperatives in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao exemplified the co-op principle of ‘Concern for the Community’ by being in the forefront of providing support to the families and front liners in their respective communities.  It is noteworthy to highlight the efforts of the co-ops to provide fast and direct support to the members and the community.

Most Holy Rosary MPC (Rizal)

The co-op distributed 5 kilos of rice and P300 worth of canned goods to its 8,000 members across the province.  Food is one of the immediate needs of the people, especially with the restricted mobility of people because of the lockdown.  Through these provisions, families will be secured of their two weeks’ worth of food supply.

 

CamSur MPC (Camarines Sur)

In partnership with the Department of Agriculture in the province, the co-op rolled the Kadiwa-on-Wheels, to provide nutritious food to the community and to provide marketing opportunities to farmers who are also active co-op members.

 

Barbaza Multi-Purpose Cooperative (Antique, Iloilo, and Aklan)

he co-op visited the various checkpoint areas and provided hot meals to the front liners who are keeping the community safe and orderly in the time of quarantine.

 

Oro Integrated Cooperative (Cagayan de Oro City)

The co-op donated knapsack sprayers to 14 barangays in Poblacion, Cagayan de Oro City, which will be used to disinfect possibly contaminated areas.  One way to curb the spread of the virus is to locate and disinfect areas where infection may occur.

 

Basud Development Cooperative (Camarines Norte)

To protect the health workers in Camarines Norte who are risking their lives in hospitals and clinics, the co-op donated 103 Personal Protective Equipment(PPE).

More and more co-ops are doing social assistance to the community to support the efforts of the government and other civil society organizations.  Their stories will also be featured in the coming days.

In these uncertain times when remittances from Overseas Filipinos are not assured, co-ops provide the much needed financial access to the OF families through calamity loans with minimal interest and enterprise support loans for micro-entrepreneurs.

Through these financial and social supports, co-ops assure its members that through unity and cooperation, we can overcome these challenging months and come out stronger and even more united.