Answered by: Rehema Juma
University: Saint Augustine university of Tanzania (Mwanza campus)
Programme: Diploma in human resources management
Year: 1
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Introduction
Cooperative is an autonomous association of person united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through jointly-owned and democratically enterprises. Cooperative may include business owned and managed by the people who use their service (Consumer cooperatives), Organization by the people who work there (Workers Cooperative) and, or organization by the people to whom they provide accommodation (Housing cooperative) Hybrids such as workers cooperative that are also consumers cooperative or credit union multi Stakeholder cooperative.
Cooperative Movement
Cooperative started to be organized and coordinated when there was an increase in imbalances of production in the society. Although there is no exact consistent to the exact origin of cooperative movement but many authority argue that the origin lies within the Europe (Shafter 1999, Itolyoake 1908). The first recorded cooperative date back to 1750 in France where local cheese makers in the community of Franche-comté established a producer Cheese cooperative.
Origin of modern cooperative
The modern cooperative traces its origin back in the middle of 19th century. The movement was a result of hardship condition of life which forced them into cooperation. Despite, the cooperative to be started with the Europe, cooperative was of different types depending on the nature of the problems suffered by the citizen. For example, in England there were a consumer’s cooperative, craftsmen due to problems caused by industrial revolutions, traders and farmers cooperative in France and Germany respectively were also an example.
Cooperative movement In Europe
England
In England the movement was established under the Rochdale society. This was a society of equitable pioneers comprised of 10 weavers and 20 others in Rochdale England, It was formed in 1844. The society introduced Rochdale principles which aimed at Promoting cooperation. The Rochdale pioneer did not aim at changing the system of market economy which were present rather they only intended to generate their own income from the existing system. In england, cooperative was regarded as private association thus there was no legislation codified to promote and rule cooperatives societies. In England the most types of cooperatives established was consumers and traders coopertaives, this was due to the effect of industrial revolution which took place in 19th century, the revolution driven more people (especially skilled labour) into poverty due to lack of employment. These people, under the Rochdale principles jointed together to form cooperatives where they opened their own store for selling food and other product. The succefully example of cooperative business provided by the Rochdale society was established between 1850 and 1855 was a flourmill, a shoe factory and textile plant. By 1863 more than 400british cooperative association modelled after Rochdale society were in operation.
France
In France the movement was founded by various activist like Charles Fouries, Philippe Buchez, Louis Blank and later Charles Gide. The founders of modern cooperative in France aimed at changing or escaping the existed social economic system which was seen to be unjust and explotative. It is in 1750 where various cooperative seen to be established in France. The most notable cooperative were established in franche-comté region by various cheese makers' mutual society. Apart from that, there were other cooperative which were established by various craftsmen who were suffered from competition Of new industrial product. Unlike England were codification of cooperative legislation did not archieved at that time, in France this was different. In 1865, the first proposal of cooperative legislation was made and the law was enacted two years later authorising the rights to associate. Although the general law on cooperative was made in 1947.
Germany
In Germany the rise of modern cooperative was due to the industrial revolution and land reforms which took place in 1860's. The land policy at the rural area introduce enclosure system in which the land were later owned by few individual people. This led to to unavailability of the land to majority of people who depended on agriculture hence driven them to poverty. In reacting to this situation, differentcooperative was established such as Market cooperative, agricultural supply, Thrift and loan society in the rural areas in order to overcome that situation. Founder of that cooperative was known as Raiffeisen and Haas. Apart from that, in urban areas the condition was serious harsh to craftsmen and traders, this was due to the industrial revolution which took place at that time. Thus under the concept of Herman schelze-Delitzsch who was a judge and parliamentarian facilitated the formulation the cooperative of traders and craftsmen so as to overcome the problem they were faced. Raiffeisen and Schultz-Delitch developed anindependently formulated cooperative model in German. By 1850, Schultz-Delitsch was able to draft the first cooperative society Act for germany. He developed it from one of the by laws cooperative he was promoting. In 1889, the Act was passed and later became world wide model of cooperative.
Spread of cooperative in Asia and Africa.
After the successful establishment and development of strong cooperative in Europe, the movement was never stop at there, rather it was spread to other part of the world. Now, regarding to the main discussion, the modern cooperative was also spread in Asia and African countries. Speaking to Asia, the modern cooperative was firstly adopted in Japan, south Korea, Vietnam and China. While in Africa the modern cooperative was mostly adopted through colonialism, hence the nature and pattern of cooperative depended on the nature of colonialism.
Asia ‘
In Asia, starting with Japan, the modern cooperative reached in the around 1890. At this time the movement was facilitated by various scholars including a Germany professor UDO EGGERT who at the material time taught at the Japanese university. Eggert was able to write and publish a book known as “policy of promoting Japanese Agriculture. The book entailed and emphasized two roots of cooperative delivered from the Raiffeisen which are autonomous form of an organized self help and an imported model. A part from Udo, the researches on cooperative which conducted by various scholars who studied in Germany contributed to the spread and development of modern cooperatives in Japan.
Upon the successfully establishment of various cooperative like that of Japanesse cooperative alliances, the predecessors of Japanese consumer cooperative union (JCCU) (1945), Japan was able to introduce various laws including an industrial cooperative association (1900) which covered four types of cooperatives. Namely credit marketing, purchasing and production cooperative.
South Korea
In South Korea, the spread of modern cooperative was not too far different from that of Africa. The spread of modern cooperative in South Korea was the result of colonialism under the Japanese. During Japan domination, there was establishment of various cooperatives such as workers and agricultural cooperation which followed the nature and pattern of Japanese cooperative. So upon the end of colonialism, South Korea enacted the first agricultural cooperative Act in 1957 so as to re-organizing the agricultural cooperatives formed during the Japanese occupation. Later on in 1961, the Act was replaced by the new agricultural cooperative law and was amended nine times so as to meet the need of cooperative system they needed.
The spread of modern cooperative in Africa
The modern cooperative in Africa was spread and facilitated by so called colonialism. Thus the nature of cooperative on certain country depended on the nature of domination. That is to say the nature of cooperative in British colonies was in some extent different from Germany or French colonies.
Spread of modern cooperatives in British colonies.
Upon the arrival of British in Africa, they introduced the legislation which was mostly based and used in Indian colonies. That was knows as The British Indian pattern of cooperative (BIPC) 1930. The legislation in some extent based on Schulze-Delitzsh codification which was also adjusted to the British legal system. The legislation specified how the cooperative should behave and how should be controlled. Simply all cooperatives under this legislation were became partial state controlled.
Spread of cooperative in Tanzania
In Tanganyika cooperative traces its roots back on 1920’s where the first cooperative legislation was enacted in 1932 and complemented in 1976 by the socialist model of cooperative in form of villagization programme through the village and ujamaa villages.In Tanganyika, the spread of cooperative was highly adopted, since Peasants in started informal (unregistered) cooperatives in 1925 so that they could capture part of the trade profit of their crops. The first cooperative union in the country was the Kilimanjaro Native Cooperative Union (KNCU), which was registered with its eleven affiliated primary cooperatives on 1st of January 1933. The event took place in Moshi district, which by then comprised of the current Rombo, Hai, Moshi, Siha, and Mwanga districts. In 1924 there were 3,300 peasants growing coffee in Moshi district who sold 40 tons of parchment coffee. The formation of the KNCU saw the number of growers increase to 15,000 in the district. They sold 1,709 tons of parchment coffee valued at ₤ 39,000 in 1933. By 1966 KNCU was marketing 16,730 tons of clean coffee per year sold at ₤ 308 per ton[1]
The Ngoni-Matengo Cooperative Marketing Union and its three affiliated primary cooperatives were registered in 1936 in what is now Songea region. In the same year tobacco output rose to 120 tons – up from one ton in 1930. Tobacco output reached four figure numbers in the 1950s[2]. Increased tonnages of crops were reported in other areas as soon the cooperative effort was put into action[3].
In the 1940s and 1950s other important cooperatives and unions were formed and registered. These were the Bugufi Coffee Cooperative Society in Ngara district, the Mwakaleli Coffee Growers Association in the Rungwe district. The latter went on to change its name to Rungwe African Cooperative Union. Others were the Bukoba Native Cooperative Union in Bukoba district, and the Lake Province Growers Association in the Lake Victoria area, which later changed its name to the Victoria Federation of Cooperative Unions Limited (VFCU The VFCU was a remarkable organization that has gone down in history as a landmark. It grew dramatically in marketing and ginning cotton that was produced by peasants in the lake zone. It facilitated the supply of low priced inputs, such as cotton pesticides and seeds to members, which it purchased in bulk from manufacturers or wholesalers. It also started an industrialization process in the lake zone distinguishing itself in the operation of cotton ginneries. The federation bought and loaned tractors to its members; its famous building (Pamba House) in Mwanza town, where new tractors were on display for members to buy, was almost a “pilgrim” centre for cotton farmers in the whole of the lake zone. By the 1960s the VFCU was the largest cooperative in Africa[4].
Modern Cooperatives in Francophone Countries
The francophone countries these were the countries occupied by French colonialist during colonialism era in Africa. In these countries the law applicable in cooperative was directly enacted in French and imposed to all French colonies. As it was in British colonies the enacted laws made the cooperatives to be under state control. For stance there was establishment of so called communal provident society - Société Indigene de Prévoyance (SIP), Later Société Africaine de Prévoyance (SAP) - socio-economic, semipublic communal organizations which also was under state control. In 1955, a co-operative societies’ decree was made for co-operative activities and after independence, the countries made their own co-operative legislation following French models. Since 2010 there is a common Co-operative Societies Act of OHADA (Organisation pour l’Harmonisation en Afrique du Droit des Affaires -Organization for the Harmonisation of Business law in Africa) with 390 articles to be applied by all Member states, replacing the former co-operative legislation.
Conclusion
Despite of problems suffered in cooperative, still cooperative has a lot contribution in the development of any country. It is through cooperative building of hospital, house, factories and more other social services are made easer.
References
- Chayanov, P (1966) The theory of peasant Economy, Homewood Illinois, Irw in for American Economic Association.
- Kimario, A (1992) Marketing cooperatives in Tanzania: problems and prospectus, Dar es salaam, Dar essalaam university press
- Melnyk, G (1985) The search for community: Fro utopia to a cooperative society, Montreal & Buffalo, Black Rose Books.
- Akpoghor, P. (1993) Selected Essays on Cooperative Theory and Practice, Marburg, Marbug Consult for Self-help Promotion.
Citations
