Esther Gicheru

Good morning, everyone. My name is Professor Esther Gichero from Nairobi, Kenya. I serve as the Deputy Vice-Chancellor in charge of Finance, Planning, and Administration at the Cooperative University of Kenya. I am delighted to be here at this conference to discuss the relevance of platform cooperatives and how they align with cooperative principles. We uphold the seven cooperative principles, among which are Open Membership, Democratic Member Control, Economic Member Participation, and particularly Education and Training—a principle I hold in high regard, given my background in a cooperative training institution.

In these principles, I see a significant role for platform cooperatives, especially in providing members with the equality they deserve by enabling them to own and make decisions about the platforms. For instance, in Kenya, we have initiated a platform that allows farmers to share information and connect with various stakeholders along different value chains. This platform empowers farmers to choose the right seeds and inputs, crucial for their success. Ownership of these platforms by the farmers means they control their data and are integral to the decision-making process. This is why I believe it is the perfect time for platform cooperatives to flourish, applying these universal principles to ensure members truly benefit from their platforms.