THE ROLE OF FARMERS MULTI-PURPOSE COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES IN ACCELERATING FOOD PRODUCTION A CASE STUDY OF ORLU LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA

posted on November 28, 2019

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The term cooperative can be used in its generic term to cover a wide area of activities which two or more people join together either formally on adhoc or permanent basis, for legal or illegal or socially accepted or unaccepted actions to fulfill certain aims. Such action may be selfish in nature or may be in the interest of those performing the action without it being detrimental to any one else.

However, cooperation is often used in the positive sense. It is also used in a much narrower sense to mean activities undertaken by cooperative organizations. The study of cooperation in this later sense therefore means the scientific or academic study of cooperative organizations.

Cooperative has been defined for different purpose and in slightly different ways by economists, lawyers, philosophers and others. Precisely, cooperative is an association of persons, usually of limited means, who have voluntarily joined together their resources to achieve a common economic end and through the formation of a democratically controlled business enterprise, making equitable contribution to the capital required and accepting a fair share of the risks and benefits of the undertaking. Cooperative started in Great Britain in 1760. And different cooperative societies exist since then. There are types of cooperative, thrift and credit cooperative, thrift and loan, agricultural cooperative and etc.

Agricultural cooperative can be defined as cooperative societies that engage in the production, processing, marketing and distribution of agricultural products. Types of agricultural cooperative are group-farming society. Member of the society engage in the production of a variety of crops while they also arrange for the marketing of such crops. Some other agricultural cooperative is marketing cooperative. These societies are involved in the marketing of member’s products. This is done at low cost and efficiently for members benefits.

Agricultural cooperative thrift and credit these societies are concerned with the mobilization of credit and making the available to members at a low cost for either prosecution, marketing or consumption purpose. Agricultural consumer cooperative societies engages in the sale of manufactured/consumer products to members at reasonable prices they are also similar to other consumer cooperative but for the fact that they are mainly found in the rural areas while the members are mostly farmers.

Agricultural multi-purpose farmer’s cooperative societies combine many of these functions as their main criteria’s like production, processing of agricultural produce, marketing of the3 processed agricultural produce, credit facilities to members etc. the can also be known as service centers for the benefit of their members.

1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

Most often, business activities are faced with numerous problems, which hinder achievement of their objectives. Some of these problems are posed by the vagaries in the economy such as inflation while some area high and expensive. This situation is neither of interest to the consumer nor the producers. In effect, marketing cooperative was introduced to arrest the situation especially in the rural areas, so as to bring society into the distribution sector and increase its efficiency.

Consumers cooperative are societies made up of consumers, found basically by consumer who in a bid to take advantage of mutual efforts, ensuring that the quality of goods, they buy is of high standard and at a reasonable price. The idea of consumer cooperative sprang up in Britain during the middle of the nineteenth century as a reaction to the growing exploitation of the workers by the capitalist. Goods were not only expensive, but were adulterated with in correct weights and measures.

Farmers’ Multi-purpose Cooperative Society in indicating from its name, it ingrates into itself from problems farmers. As presently constituted, Farmers’ Multi-purpose Cooperative Society represents about 70 percent of all cooperative found in south-east, Nigeria.

The idea of a Farmers’ Multi-purpose Cooperative Society stems from the understanding that the chief occupation of rural dwellers is agriculture. So in order to accelerate significant rural resource productivity, an organization has to be found that will champion this course. With effective financing, Farmers’ Multi-purpose Cooperative Societies can undertake all the functions we have discussed.