Questions About Cooperative ...... introduction

INTRODUCTION

It is necessary to let intending cooperators know that what they are going into is a real business and that they should treat it accordingly. But what we experience presently in the system of setting up and running cooperative is a group of persons who have been told by friends and colleagues that all it takes to benefit from government and other kind of loans is just to get themselves registered as a cooperative society. These newcomers will go as far as borrowing money in order to register the group.

During registration of cooperative society, the officers, including the registrar and Director of cooperative does not care to interview these  beginner, recognizing that they are ignorant of the real method of operating the cooperative movement, automatically find themselves in the cooperative labour market (sorting for free/easy money that they may never find).

Imaging the kind of shock they will experience, finding out that just registering a cooperative does not entitle them to benefit from government incentive, including loan and grants. Expected result is reversion. That’s going back to nothing as they may not be patience enough to actually get help as a real cooperative.

Realistically, the cooperative officers or any agent approved by the ministry to conduct formal sensitization for new cooperators were presumed to tutor the new cooperator towards understanding the fact and reality, the difference between the corporate establishment and the cooperative society.

For instance any force man that does not pass through incentive training, may easily become a prey to the opponent in the case that there is a chaos. Hence proper training is needed. Likewise the cooperative movement. If a cooperator is not given the required orientation, he may easily fall away when his plans of becoming a member of the group which is joining to get money is not realized.

This book “A SUCCESSFUL COOPERATOR” has been designed as a question and answer document expected to aid all members of existing or new cooperatives to excel in the business of cooperating together to achieve their common goals.

The writer

Agbonlahor .O. Osakue

Professor of creative Ideology