Rafi Goldman, the Director of NISPED-ICECOS, was the first representative of the world cooperative movement to arrive in Beijing with solid proposals for helping with the reconstruction of areas in the Szechuan province that were devastated by the earthquake in May. Rafi met with senior leadership from the All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives (ACFSMC) -  a cooperative with 160 million members. The ACFSMC provides agricultural inputs (such as, fertilizers, seeds, etc.); processes and markets agricultural commodities; retails agricultural products through their chain of supermarkets; and provides credit and financial services, and health, educational, and welfare services to rural communities.

 

 

Rafi Goldman (center) with Mr. Rong Jun, Director International Cooperation Department ACFSMC (right) &  Mr. Chen Shuxong, Chief of Economic Development Division (left).

 

 

During his visit to China, the ACFSMC was interested in learning from Rafi how the Israeli cooperative movement, in general, and NISPED, in specific, could help in the reconsturction of the Szechuan province that was so badly damaged by the earthquake that hit the country in mid May. NISPED has proposed to help farmers rebuild their lives and communities with a three-pronged project that will include: (a) the training of ACFSMC trainers in the turning agriculture into a business enterprise that can greatly promote rural development; (b) introducing irrigation technologies, based on Israeli expertise; and (c) offering specially-designed study missions to Israel for ACFSMC leaders so they can meet with cooperative and rural development managers and leaders in order to gain concrete ideas and knowledge in these areas.

 

It is hoped that after the Chinese rescue and emergency teams finish their massive task of providing immediate relief to the peoples and communities destroyed by the earthquake (estimated to be in the late summer, 2008), we will be able to begin working on this multi-tiered project with our Chinese partners and with our cooperative partners in Israel.