A bill that would declare October as "National Cooperative Month" has been approved in the Senate on third and final reading.
Voting 22-0, senators approved on Monday Senate Bill No. 1807, which proposes to officially declare October of every year as National Cooperative Month to recognize and promote the cooperatives sector.
"By practice, our cooperatives have already been celebrating Cooperative Month every October. What we’re doing with this bill is recognizing that practice and making it official, so we can further promote cooperativism on a national level," said Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, chairman of the Senate Committee on Cooperatives and a co-author of the bill.
He said cooperatives have been playing a significant role in the country, especially in helping Filipinos cope with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"National Cooperative Month is about celebrating and acknowledging the cooperative sector’s significant contributions to the country...This bill is our small gift to the sector that has given so much to the country throughout the years," he added.
When signed into law, the bill would institutionalize Proclamation No. 493 issued by then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in 2003.
Under the bill, the chairperson of the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA), in coordination with the cooperative development councils, national and local federations and union of cooperatives, and other agencies of the government, will be mandated to conduct activities and programs that promote the principles and values of cooperatives and encourage cooperative movement during the month of October.
Aside from Zubiri, Sen. Risa Hontiveros also co-authored the bill.