Malaysian school co-ops a reference by other nations

MUAR: Malaysia's school cooperatives have been successful at the international level and are looked on as a reference by other countries because they operate under an organised and systematic movement, said Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
Muhyiddin, who is also education minister, said India, Thailand and Fiji are among countries showing interest in Malaysia's school cooperative system.
"I was made to understand that these countries have already conducted studies on our school cooperative system and want to learn more and apply our management strategy and mechanism.
"Therefore, it is not surprising for our school cooperatives to be regularly invited to present working papers at international events. Congratulations!" he told about 2,000 teachers, students and school cooperatives' representatives in Muar while launching the national-level School Cooperative Day 2014 yesterday.
He said these cooperatives, which have thrived for 46 years, have reached a high level of maturity, particularly in management.
From just nine in 1968, he said the number of school cooperatives now stands at 2,280 or 96% of the overall 2,376 secondary schools nationwide.
"As at Dec 31 last year, school cooperatives had contributed to a turnover of RM312.9 million with assets worth RM271.39 million. This has also contributed significantly to the country's income and economy," he said.
Muhyiddin also urged institutions of higher learning which have not set up cooperatives to jump onto the bandwagon.
As at last month, 175 institutions of higher learning have established cooperatives. – Bernama