Iran Daily had an exclusive interview with Khatereh Ostadrezaei, the head of the Women and Social Responsibility Commission of the Iran Chamber of Cooperatives on February 6 saying that:
Q: To what extent can your efforts as the head of the Women and Social Responsibility Commission of the Iran Chamber of Cooperatives be effective?
We make as much endeavor as we can. Different occasions allow us to enter this field with a professional and technical look, and once again strengthen women’s cooperatives and eliminate existing problems.
We hope that with the help of all effective governmental and non-governmental institutions, including the Office of the Vice Presidency for Women and Family Affairs, as well as Women and Family Affairs of the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor and Social Welfare, and other related bodies such as the Agricultural and Rural Cooperatives Department of the Agricultural Jihad Ministry, and handicrafts cooperatives under the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts, and the Carpet Department of the Ministry of Industry can work together and take effective action to integrate issues related to the field of cooperatives in the country.
Q: Ms. Rezaei, how can women play a role in the field of the economy and in the field of cooperatives?
The special role of women in raising and developing family-related topics and creating a healthy society is undeniable. A country that wants to have a healthy economy must first of all have education and a healthy family. Healthy family, healthy economy, and healthy community are the three sides of the power triangle in each country, and this clearly shows the role and position of women. If these three sides are weak at any stage, it would definitely not have a happy result for the country.
A country that does not have healthy and knowledgeable mothers does not have a healthy and up-to-date family and, consequently, does not have a good economy and social presence and, as a result, it will suffer from chronic and intermittent problems. Therefore, in order to prevent these harms, we should try to establish centers in the field of women. Among these centers are cooperatives. Cooperatives today are the safest and strongest centers in the world in the field of health education and economic development. Accordingly, we in the Women and Social Responsibility Commission have made every effort in this regard, and by holding meetings, we will follow the development of the economic activities of women’s cooperatives across the country.
Q: What is the status of women’s activities in the field of cooperatives in the country?
We have witnessed good measures taken in organizing home-based businesses in recent years. Home-based businesses can play a constructive role in times of crises in the form of supporting cooperatives, suppliers of requirement cooperatives, and distribution cooperatives. We hope to see more effective and positive steps in this direction in synergy with other sectors. On the other hand, with the coming to power of the new government and the special attention and focus of the government on the cooperative sector and a justice-oriented and sustainable economy, we will see new progress in this area. What we need today in the field of cooperatives is to reform, screen and strengthen existing units, not to increase and create new groups.
Q: Why do existing cooperatives need reform and screening?
As one who works in the field of women’s cooperatives, I believe that instead of establishing new cooperatives, we should prioritize the screening of old units. We need special refinement in the cooperative sector and related units, including chambers of commerce and unions at the provincial and national levels. Of course, in addition to that, we must also strengthen the activation and forming sales and distribution departments in the cooperative sector. Normally, distribution cooperatives and consumer cooperatives can be helpful in this area but, first of all, new weak points should be identified and removed without any qualms. And efficient and active cooperatives in the field of women should be separated from passive cooperatives, and should be prioritized for financial support.
Of course, we are after receiving a budget in Parliament for this issue, and during the recent three months, we have held negotiations and consultations in this regard with the Female Lawmakers Bloc of Parliament. Our request for budget allocation will certainly include active units, because sometimes the statistics given in the field of cooperative units are not very accurate, and sometimes about half of them are not active units.
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