Kiribati
425
888
8.981
Kiribati
Kiribati Key Figures National Report.pdf
(220.27 KB)
Key figures
Kiribati Key Figures Highlights.pdf
(89.58 KB)
Key figures
Research overview
Responding to challenges and existing knowledge gaps facing the cooperative movement, this mapping research seeks to provide exhaustive information on cooperatives worldwide. This is achieved through a process jointly conducted by the ICA and its four regional offices – Cooperatives of the Americas, Cooperatives Europe, ICA Africa, and ICA Asia-Pacific – using a common methodology. Each office collected the input of ICA members present in the countries within its geographic area, by using the same questionnaire, and completing it with relevant national statistics, in order to obtain an accurate picture of the national situation. Mapping out cooperatives in each country provides a more precise picture of the cooperative context at national and regional levels, enhances the movement's visibility, networking, partnerships opportunities, as well as advocacy, and empowers cooperators by providing them tools for positive change.
This webpage presents a snapshot of the research results for Kiribati. For more information, you can download the full report and the highlights here.
History
The cooperative movement in Kiribati dates back to the 1950s. Over the years, cooperatives in production-centric sectors like fisheries, tourism and coconut, have grown with government support and increase in subsidies. Strengthening the performance of cooperatives is in line with the government's long-term developmental plans, the Kiribati 20-year Vision (KV20) from 2016-2036. The government has updated manuals and regulations to promote cooperatives as instruments for improving private sector activity and sustainable development. With a 94% increase in the number of cooperatives in the last 40 years, they play an important role in furthering the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the country.
Overview
ICA has one member from Kiribati.
In Kiribati, the research questionnaire was distributed to and completed by 1 ICA member organisations in the country. The data collected was for the year 2019.
Summary
As of 2019, ICA member represent 425 cooperatives in Kiribati with 8,981 members and 888 employees.
Cooperatives are present across diverse sectors including agricultural, wholesale and retail trade among others.
Legal framework
Legal framework
Legal Frameworks Highlights - Kiribati.pdf
(79.85 KB)
Legal framework
Legal research overview
The legal framework analysis aims to provide general knowledge of the national cooperative legislation and of its main characteristics and contents, with particular regard to those aspects of regulation regarding the identity of cooperatives and its distinction from other types of business organisations, notably the for-profit shareholder corporation.
It aims to evaluate whether the national legislation in place supports or hampers the development of cooperatives, and is, therefore “cooperative friendly” or not, and the degree to which it may be considered so, also in comparison to the legislation in force in other countries of the ICA region, or at the supranational level.
In addition, the research aims to provide recommendations for eventual renewal of the legal frameworks in place in order to understand what changes in the current legislation would be necessary to improve its degree of “cooperative friendliness”, which is to say, to make the legislation more favourable to cooperatives, also in consideration of their specific identity. This webpage presents a snapshot of the legal framework analysis results for Kiribati.
General overview
The legal framework analysis of Kiribati provides a general overview of the Cooperative Societies Ordinance Cap 14 and the Cooperative Societies Regulations 1977. This analysis also includes some consideration of the Credit Unions Act 1990(as amended in 1993) although to a lesser extent. When Kiribati gained self-independence in 1977, the new government adopted the laws in existence before the independence and consolidated them as ordinances. The Cooperative Societies Ordinance Cap 14 was among the ordinances adopted and remains the current law (as of March 2020). Despite the age of this cooperative legal framework, The Cooperative Societies Ordinance Cap 14 is flexible enough to include a variety of cooperative types.
Main laws relevant to cooperatives in Kiribati
Cooperative Societies Ordinance Cap 14
Cooperative Societies Regulations 1977
Credit Unions Act 1990 (as amended in 1993)
Some cooperative principles have been given effect within the legislation. However, The Cooperative Societies Ordinance Cap 14 and the Credit Unions Act 1990 doesn’t specifically set out the ICA Cooperative principles or reference the ICA Statement of Cooperative identity or another instrument which refers to those principles.
Cooperative friendliness
The Cooperative Societies Ordinance Cap 14 is more cooperative unfriendly than friendly because the law has not been reviewed or updated since it was adopted in 1977. Also, it is based on a template colonial law known as the British Indian Pattern of Co-operation (BIPC). The fourth cooperative principle of Autonomy and Independence is undermined by the Registrar’s extensive powers to intervene and the ordinance also assumes the Registry to have the resources, skills, and support to make this intervention. The Cooperative Societies Ordinance Cap 14 is not supportive of “Cooperation among Cooperatives” and “Education, Training, and Information” cooperative principles.
Key recommendations for improvement
- Empowering cooperatives(especially small cooperatives) to independently organise and implement auditing, reporting, and business development.
- Investment in a program supporting the cooperative principle of “Education, Training and Information”.
- Incorporation of new technologies such as an e-reporting system to minimise regulatory burdens on cooperatives, especially for those at the formation stage.
- Improvement in processes for the prosecution of offenses along with an updated fines scheme.
Conclusions
Kiribati’s cooperative law requires revision and its government has demonstrated commitment to cooperative development and is currently working on developing a national cooperative policy and revising its law (as of March 2020). Free training to registered cooperatives, conducting awareness programs, working on development projects for strengthening cooperatives, are examples of best practices in the promotion of cooperative business structures in Kiribati.
The legal frameworks analysis is a tool developed under the ICA-EU Partnership #coops4dev. It is an overview of the national legal frameworks at the time of writing. The views expressed within are not necessarily those of the ICA, nor does a reference to any specific content constitute an explicit endorsement or recommendation by the ICA.