PRESS RELEASE: Announcement of Change of Guard at Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF)

Source: Cooperative Development Foundation.

HYDERABAD, INDIA, August 15 – Sandhya Rani will succeed Rama Reddy as Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF) President on 1st September 2008.

Dear friends of civil society organisations (CSOs), mutually aided cooperatives (MACs), self help groups (SHGs) and microfinance institutions (MFIs), I have great pleasure in informing you that Ms Sandhya Rani, currently Vice President of Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF-Sahavikasa), will succeed me as President with effect from 1st September 2008. I will cease to be a trustee and the president of CDF-Sahavikasa on 31st August 2008. From 1st September 2008, Sandhya will be performing the functions, discharging the responsibilities, and exercising the powers of the CDF’s President and leading CDF-Sahavikasa.

Ms Sandhya Rani has a distinguished academic background, having studied at prestigious Hyderabad University and Harvard University. Her analytical skills and communication skills are of high quality. Presently, she is holding a top management position in the Indian Postal Service, planning to relinquish that position in the next few months, and hoping to work in the fields and places of her choice. One major activity that she has committed to pursue vigorously is to revitalize CDF-Sahavikasa. Sandhya will be the sixth president of CDF; she will be the youngest person to hold that position; she will be the first woman to occupy that position.

Sandhya was chosen to be on the CDF Board of Trustees six years ago; she was chosen to be CDF vice president three years ago; now she is chosen to be CDF president from 1st September 2008. She is quite familiar with CDF’s objective, strategies and activities. There is no exaggeration when I state that she will effectively lead CDF in the coming years.

One anecdote will suffice to validate my assessment of Sandhya. Last October, CDF was invited to interact with the Parliamentary Committee that was examining the Microfinance Development and Regulation Bill 2007. The CDF Team was consisting of Dr LC Jain, Prof Nilakantha Rath, Ms Sandhya Rani and myself. The team had met a couple of times to discuss and finalise CDF’s position that was to be presented to the Parliamentary Committee. At the end of these internal discussions, the team requested Sandhya to make the presentation on behalf of the team, with an understanding that other team members would interact with the Parliamentary Committee, as and when necessary. Immediately after the completion of our dialogue with the Committee, Sandhya left the Parliament House because of a scheduled appointment and, at the invitation of the Committee, the other three (Dr Jain, Prof Rath and myself) remained in Parliament House to interact informally with the committee members over a cup of tea.

As we were dispersing from the Parliament House, Dr Jain said: “It was an excellent presentation by Sandhya. There was not a single inappropriate or unnecessary word. She is an extremely competent person.” Prof Rath added: “I was really amazed to see the energy that Sandhya put in to make the presentation informative, persuasive and interesting.” I need not add anything more. Most of you will be interacting with her in coming months and years and you will have several opportunities to make your own assessment.

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