INFLUENCE OF COOPERATIVE SOCIETY ACTIVITIES ON THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF OSISIOMA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF ABIA STATE

CHAPTER ONE

             INTRODUCTION

1.1   Background of the study

Co-operative movement has been in existence since the early days of civilization. Historical accounts suggest that various forms of co-operative activities exist since the days of the Babylonian era, and some said that cooperative is as old as mankind. It is the natural tendency of people to help each other (Chukwu, 1999).

Cooperative is the joint working of two or more cersons with a view to achieving a common end. Social progress depends on it and modern civilization cannot continue without it, scattered factors of production have ceen brought together by cooperative.

Many tasks have been done cooperatively, community efforts are put into building of road, bridges, houses, thrift and credit facilities, etc. These provide excellent examples.

At early nineteenth century in Britain, during the industrial revolution, the introduction of newly inverted machinery and other labour saving techniques gave rise to wide spread freedom to exploit others in an attempt to get rich quick. The machines conveniently replaced human labour with relative ease. It means the work was done both faster and better (Birchall, 2008).

Consequently, wages paid to workers were low but ionger hours of work coupled with in healthy working conditions. There was a mass rural-urban migration, father, mother and children worked in factories for long hours and family life was totally disrupted.

The said socio-economic conditions brought in dishonesty. False weight and measures were applied and housing condition very miserable. And yet goods were sold at such exorbitant price that the industrial owners in humanly sacked workers with careless abandon. Those who were left behind for whatever reasons were cruelly treated and in fact reduced to mere taking machines, starvation and suffering because so rampant among the poor that the period is better known.

The indices of social and economic" development includes employment opportunities, provision of social amenities to communities, good governance, commerce and industry, trade, manufacturing, Agricultural sector and education.

The above social and economic conditions gave rise to savage conflicts between the employers and the employees. Men of conscience were indisputably touched deeply. Consequently, humanitarian organizations sprang up, either to reduce to the barest minimum or to stamp out those undesirable human evils. There was an attempt to find solutions to the deteriorating conditions of the working class, characterized by their exploitation by factory.

The need to "join hands" and come together in fulfilling a cooperative societies were not very successful until the "Rockdale Equitable Pioneer" under the leadership of a dedicated philanthropist,  politician and church man Robert Owen, succeeded in forming a successful cooperative society in December 1844 (Ojo 2001).

Cooperative societies have succeeded in providing employment opportunities to the jobless youths in the society. However, the unemployment rate in Nigeria is reduced as a result of the existence of cooperative societies in our various communities (Telema, 2004).

Cooperative societies also provides social amenities like pipe borne waters, clinics, road maintenance, free drugs and immunizations against influenza, etc. 8Tessy 2009).In terms of good governance, cooperative societies also organize leadership forums and workshops for both the past, current, and future leaders in our societies.

They impact the knowledge of good governance into them. Cooperative societies have equally helped immensely in lending money to industrialists to aid commerce and industry in our societies. Most traders also affiliate with cooperative societies to enable them get incentives, loans and other dividends which will enable them progress in their business.

On the other hand, Agriculturalists are also encouraged and sponsored by cooperative societies. Also, cooperative societies educate, enlighten and inform the farmers on the new farming techniques and methods.

Cooperative societies also sponsor bright and intelligent students in the community by giving the scholarships and awards.

Cooperative societies in its broadest form is any form of organization where two or more persons come together with one motive in a formulized way to achieve some set goals and objectives thereby extending their plans to benefit its members and the community where it is located.

However, this particular study is aimed at identifying and investigating the influence of cooperative society activities on the social and economic development of

Osisioma Area of Abia State.

1.2.1 Roy’s voluntary theory of cooperative society

          Voluntary theory of cooperative society was propounded by Roy Roland in the year 1951.

          However, this theory states that cooperative society is a voluntary organization established for the pursuance of economic, social and political; interest of its members. This implies that cooperative should be an association of persons usually of limited means, who have voluntary joined together to achieve a common economic and through the formation of a democratically controlled business organizations, making equitable, and accepting a fair share of risk and benefit of the undertaking, more, it is a voluntary association of fee and independent persons for the betterment of their economic conditions.

          The implication of this theory to this study is that cooperative movements apart from their economic roles, still have other aims and an ideal cooperator seek to apply cooperative methods to all purposes of social life and does so because it is believed that in working for a common goal, man’s highest qualities are enlisted and developed, the man himself becomes a better man and the quality of human race is improved.

1.3     Statement of the problem

Due to the significance of cooperative society, the international labour organization has to show the fact that; "in current National Development Plan, various measures are adopted to broaden the productive base of the economy as a strategy to achieving a strong and virile economy, enhance availability of improved technology and extensive services through cooperative society activities.

The above policy statement clearly shows that the status and prominence given currently achieve and enjoyed by this relatively organization in our society is agent of change in the nation economy.

This understanding is therefore, aimed at obtaining and observing the activities of cooperative society in Osisioma Local government Area of Abia State through federal agencies to alleviate poverty, create wealth and ensure food security through cooperative society's scheme, the problem of ignorance, the formation of cooperative societies in Osisioma Local Government Area prevails hence, the need to research on".

1.       Promotion of members' interest on cooperative society activities and provision of services for them in Osisioma Local Government Area.

2.       Provision of fertilizer to members who are farmers

at low cost.

3.       Creating   of marketing   strategies for members

produce.

4.       Provision of credit facilities, example, loan to members in the area.

5.       To adequately inform and involve the people of Osisioma Local Government Area on the activities of cooperative society.

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