BANGI: New legislation to replace the current Cooperative Societies Act 1993 is expected to be tabled in Parliament in December, says Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud.
He said the ministry is introducing the new law to enable the cooperatives movement to operate more effectively as a business entity and become a stronger driver of the national economy.
"Therefore, we are repealing the existing act and replacing it with a new one, which will be tabled in Parliament for first reading in December.
"The 2026 Parliament session, scheduled for March or April, is expected to see the second reading, and the aim is for enforcement by July next year," he said at the opening of the Angkasa-Minda-UKM Cooperatives Empowerment Forum here on Thursday.
Previously, Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Minister Datuk Ewon Benedick said that his ministry was drafting the new Bill.
The Cabinet paper on the Bill was presented and approved in principle on Jan 8.
Khairul Dzaimee added that the ministry is actively engaging with state governments and stakeholders to ensure the new law is properly implemented in the best interests of cooperatives.
He also said that the new law aims to create more responsive and dynamic cooperatives, facilitate cooperative businesses, enhance the well-being of the community and improve cooperative governance.
"The main essence of this new law is to liberalise the cooperative movement by reducing excessive monitoring, previously focused heavily on legislation and gives cooperatives more space to operate as business entities," he said.
Meanwhile, Angkatan Koperasi Kebangsaan Malaysia Berhad (Angkasa) president Datuk Seri Abdul Fattah Abdullah expressed support for the government's efforts to enhance the cooperatives ecosystem in the country.
"We want to make cooperatives a culture among Malaysians by 2050. Angkasa (also) strongly supports the government's efforts to liberalise the laws and regulations that are being made and improve the (cooperatives) ecosystem," he said.
Also present were Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) deputy vice-chancellor Prof Dr Abdul Halim Abdul Gafor and the Malaysian Inclusive, Development and Advancement Institute (Minda-UKM) director Prof Tan Sri Dr Noor Azlan Ghazali.
