This year has been declared as the International Year of Cooperatives, IYC, by the 64th United Nations General Assembly Resolution 64/136 in 2009 in recognition of the impact of cooperatives on poverty alleviation, employment generation and social inclusion. This resolution was further supported by the Food and Agriculture Organisation, FAO, International Fund for Agriculture Development, IFAD AND World Food Programme, WFP, which recognize cooperatives as effective and veritable tools in organizing rural and urban producers especially in agriculture, the informal sector and small and medium scale enterprises.
Against that background, member nations were expected to create public awareness about cooperation, promote the formation of cooperatives and encourage policies that are conducive to and consistent with their growth and underscore cooperative structures in such a way that their sustainability, solidarity and inclusiveness that are critical to economic development will be engendered.
Marking the ceremony in Nigeria at a celebration put together by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, (through National Cooperatives Development Centre) which saw the launching and commissioning of the Revised Cooperative Policy and the Nigerian Cooperative Law, the minister, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina represented by the minister of state in the ministry Alhaji Bukar Tijani emphasized the need of the celebration.
In his words, “the launching of the 2012 IYC and commissioning of the Revised Cooperatives Policy and the Nigerian Cooperative Law are coming at the heels of Mr. President’s omnibus Economic Transformation Agenda, ETA. This ETA is a visionary and pragmatic package designed to tackle headlong the lingering socio-economic and political problems, including security that have constrained our national development in the past years”.
Adesina re-echoed the already known fact that, agriculture remains the major source of livelihood for majority of our citizens in Nigeria which is equally the backbone of many economies of the world that has largely accounted for preponderant labor force, foreign exchange earnings and provision of raw materials for the industries informing that, “it is therefore a critical priority in Mr. President’s Economic Transformation Agenda. In this regard, Agricultural Transformation Agenda of my ministry is accorded necessary support”.
Adesina used the occasion to inform the gathering of the journey so far in the sector as encapsulated in the Agriculture Transformation Agenda, ATA, since his assumption of office in that regard.
“ATA has been articulated to grow Nigeria’s agriculture towards contributing to the revamping of the nation’s economy. It has the objectives of employment generation, food security and food import substitution. Towards this end, mu ministry is irrevocably committed to the development of agriculture as a business along the value chains with opportunities to create wealth for our farmers and citizens.
“Henceforth, agricultural production, processing and marketing as well as related services will remain with the private sector, but government will continue to provide policy guidance, some implementation assistance, regulatory and monitoring and evaluation framework as well as standardization and enforcement. In realization of ATAs objectives, my ministry has identified seventeen agricultural commodities for immediate promotion viz cassava, cotton, rice, cocoa, oil palm, maize, sorghum, soyabean, livestock, fishery and horticultural products. These are all supported by infrastructures including roads, energy and water as well as mechanization, capacity building and cooperative development nationwide, with activities concentrated around stapple crops processing zones which have been identified for specific agricultural commodities”.
In this regards, available records shows that, a number of incentives have already been rolled out to benefit agricultural producers in the country. They include the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme, GES, which aims at developing the capacity of the private sector to procure and distribute fertilizers, seeds and agro-chemicals, provision of improved planting materials and tractors at 50% subsidy contributed equally by federal and state governments. It is instructive to note here that, these new arrangements call for partnerships between the two tiers of government and the private sector.
Relating the foregoing to small holder farmers, Adesina said, “I recognize the fact that empowerment of small holder farmers is crucial to increased agricultural production and this can be brought about by practicing the ideals of the cooperative movement. Cooperatives worldwide represent irresistible instruments for smallholder farmers to benefit from economies of large scale of production. Accordingly, they can be adjudged as veritable tools for engendering market reforms. Again, small- scale producers derive needed assistance in enhancing their purchasing power, inducing remunerative and attractive but competitive prices or even lower their production costs through their cooperatives.
He equally noted with concern that, “with improved cooperatives education, members’ awareness potentials are enhanced and the process of adoption of new and improved technological packages and practices is easily facilitated. I, therefore share the view of the 10th ICA African Ministerial Cooperative Conference held in Namibia on July 27-28, 2011 that cooperatives business model could aid many African economies to withstand the adverse effects of the global financial crisis. I also agree fully with its call for African nations to maximize the opportunity on the UN declaration to institute reforms for cooperative development and sustainability in the African continent.
What can be seen as a consequence of the present administrations initiative in uplifting the nation and placing it at the threshold of industrialized nations is the way and manner in which the agenda has been tailored to meet challenges bothering on favorable economic, legal and administrative environment for the development of genuine, self reliant and autonomous cooperatives and similar organizations that can greatly contribute to service delivery, job creation and empowerment of the disadvantaged.
“I note with pleasure that the cooperatives vision is now driven by entrepreneurial capacity and accountability to generate surpluses and create employment opportunities that can translate to higher disposable incomes for members and hence improved quality of life. I subscribe to the fact that cooperative systems worldwide have potentials for promoting the cherished values of good governance, transparency and accountability necessary for political stability and nation building which are cardinal to this administration.
As the laws have been reviewed, what expectations and benefits is it supposed to bring to cooperators? Adesina provide the answer this way: “it is my fervent hope that with the reviewed policy, future cooperatives would emerge from the ideal motives of mutual felt-needs and self initiative efforts of members for pooling resources together. I am also gratified to note that all these policy provisions have been backed. I would like to assure the Nigerian cooperative movement that, under ATA, the 20 million farmers that would be registered, organized, trained and linked to credit, technology and markets in the next four years would include genuine cooperative societies. They would all be assisted to migrate from poverty and peasantry to modern agriculture and prosperity. This will require that they are properly re-organized and capacitated to work along the identified agricultural value chain”.
He charged those who will be charged with the responsibility of implementing the revised laws to bear in mind that, a high level commitment will be expected of them just as he made case for stakeholders to draw experience from other multilateral, bilateral and development partners.
Meanwhile, to the Special Assistant to the President on Social Development and Special Duties, Ms Sarah Sani, the occasion is coming at a time when the administration is determined to the nation to the next level of development.
She lauded the reasons for the existence of cooperatives pointing out that such has led to advancement of their immediate members, society and by extension the entire nation. And that, hence noble objectives are achieved through cooperatives, they have become central to the achievement of national targets as well.
Also lending his voice in the same vein, the Director of Cooperatives, Mr. Jonathan Dangwaram said, the journey which started way back in 1935 following the enactment of the Cooperative Ordinance No 6 of 1935 by the colonial administration recently found itself in weak and restrictive control which hindered it to deliver enough services to members and nation but hasten to commend the present administration for its commitment to bring about elaborate reforms in the area.
He gave insight into the exercise this way, “the ministry spearheaded a stakeholder’s review of dysfunctional cooperative policies legislation but restricted itself to the provision of financial and financial resources for practitioners, technocrats and administrators all the way from state to zonal to federal level”.
Dangwaram makes case for all cooperatives to be greatly engrossed in the task of coming to the aid of their members promptly as well as try by all means to live above board.
Cooperative Federation of Nigeria President, Engr. Jibrin Bala in a message outlined the significance of cooperatives which he said have gained global acceptance insisting that Nigeria, as a strong member of the international community must not be left behind the moving train.
In a paper presentation titled Cooperative In The Transformation of Nigeria, Dr. Festus Agbo of Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, said for cooperatives in Nigeria to be made to have international outlook, they must have basic components which according to him include, appropriate entrepreneurial education, strong private sector participation, network alliance and proper policy environment and appropriate cooperative legislation.
“There is a fresh call for a new beginning for the cooperative movement in Nigeria. This new beginning requires private sector participation in cooperative promotion. Governments need to relax their pervasive control of cooperative activities in Nigeria. The cooperative movement needs to wake up to the present reality of modern competitive business environment. The movement should look out for new alliances locally and internationally for profitable venture partners”, Agbo concluded.
Gena Lubem