Kathmandu, Jan 14: Minister for Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation, Shashi Shrestha, has urged cooperatives to be accountable to their members.

In her address to the 15th AGM of National Cooperative Bank Limited (NCBL) here today, the Minister said the major responsibility of cooperatives was to win people’s trust becoming responsible to the community always.

As the Minister expressed, the establishment of fiscal discipline in the cooperative sector had been challenging as cooperatives failed to abide by the principles, objectives and spirit of the association.

“Cooperatives are losing people’s trust,” she said.

She was of the view we all were responsible for minimizing risks in the cooperative sector, restoring people’s faith and trust in it and attracting investment. She further explained that the Constitution had recognized cooperative as one of the pillars of the economy and its role was always vital for the country’s economic development and prosperity.

The Minister urged the NCBL to fully comply with the principles of cooperatives and existing related laws and to contribute to the further effectiveness of the cooperative campaign.