Kuala Lumpur/Malaysia: The General Assembly of the ICA International Cooperative Alliance elected Dr. Ariel Guarco from Argentina as its new president for the period 2017-2021 in Kuala Lumpur on 17 November 2017.
Andreas Kappes, Secretary General of IRU – International Raiffeisen Union and Head of Department International Relations of DGRV (German Cooperative and Raiffeisen Association) congratulated Dr. Guarco on behalf of both organisations for his election and wished him all success as President of the global cooperative movement. Mr. Kappes welcomed the great support shown by the ICA members worldwide in electing Dr. Ariel Guarco with a strong vote.
Both had met on several occasions this year and agreed to maintain regular contacts. Mr. Kappes invited Dr. Guarco to visit Germany in 2018.
Dr. Guarco has been strongly committed to the cooperative movement for long. He is President of the Cooperative Confederation of the Argentine Republic (COOPERAR), President of the Cooperatives Federation of Electricity and Public Services of the Province of Buenos Aires (FEECOTRA) and President of Coronel Pringles’ Electric Cooperative Ltd. Since 2013 he has been on the Board of ICA Global and is Vice-President of Co-operatives of the America.
IRU thanks the outgoing President Madame Monique Leroux for her achievements in strengthening the cooperative movement and for positioning cooperatives on the world agenda. Due to her initiative, the Desjardins Group re-joined the IRU under her leadership in 2015.
