BY MISGANAW ASNAKE
Cooperative unions have a remarkable track record in Ethiopia implying long history of Ethiopians working together. Ethiopian’s, almost in all societies, have developed a habit of carrying out their daily chores in an organized form which exactly similar to cooperative though it is not institutionalized. These gatherings are locally known as Debo, Jigge, Wonfel and some others according to the societies’ cultural norms.
Besides, there are saving organization that the community utilize to ease their financial problems like Edir, Ekub, and saving that have institutional format to some extent. These organizations in one way or another laid foundation for the formation of modern cooperative associations led by legal frame work.
The history of modern types of cooperatives in Ethiopia dates back 50 years during at the reign of Emperor Haile Selassie I.
The emergence of modern types of cooperatives at that time was to solve employment problems of especially retired workers from public and private institutions and from the military forces. Though cooperative associations had been organized to solve their immediate problems at the time, they are now taking remarkable place in the economic activity of the country. They have been crucial in improving lives of their members and other consumers through stabilizing the market by supplying basic goods to lower income communities with fair price.
In its national scheme to reduce poverty, the government of Ethiopia has designed and issued various policies and strategies for the last decades that resulted in recording successive economic growth of which large number of citizens benefited from. These policies and strategies have considered and opened way for cooperative unions to play their role in the nation’s development.
Federal Cooperative Agency (FCA) Ethiopia has awarded cooperative unions and staff members recently in Adama for their contribution to stabilize the market and easing the soaring cost of living through dependable provision of basic commodities.
In his opening remark at the cooperative day marked under the theme of “Rebuild Better Together”, Agency Director-General Usman Surur said that cooperative unions have been playing a meaningful role in supplying basic commodities to the public at reasonable price and easing cost of living thereby contributing to curbing poverty as well as planting seedlings for the greenery development of the nation.
The main reason of marking the day of cooperative unions, on top of giving recognition to their effort, is to enable them play their role in the government’s poverty reduction scheme. Besides, it is aimed at ensuring gender equality, job creation, tackling climate change and building peace and stability among other key issues. In order to ensure accessibility of the unions to all, government has formulated policy and strategy in collaboration with stakeholders to expand and strength them in the way they carryout community focused responsibilities and exert their utmost effort in nation building, he noted.
He further stated that the cooperative unions have been improving the lives of their respective members and the community as well since they have been working in various areas and their income has been accelerating at alarming rate.
The Agency became successful in organizing the cooperative unions at the national level that have 23 million members, 94 basic cooperative unions, 395 cooperative unions and 4 cooperative federations. Their capital has reached 30 billion Birr. Out of this capital, 21 billion Birr is collected from the members in the form of saving and the interest from loan provided. Their members are regularly encouraged to engage in various sectors and upgrade their income thereby improve their livelihood. Beyond this, they have created job opportunity for over 2 million citizens of which youth and women take majority of the number.
Nowadays, the Cooperative Unions are playing pivotal role in narrowing the gap prevails in the financial sector and running their life on a better track with their high capital of about 30 billion Birr.
This comes practical through strengthening and boosting financial sectors in saving money and providing loans to members and promoting the financial sector to expand more in rural and urban areas. In line with this, creating awareness to the society towards the value of saving has been underway to enable them benefit more via saving more money. As a result, a lot of people and the youths in particular, are improving their lives by joining the sector. By the same token, on top of upgrading their standard of living, they have placed their finger print on green development program of Ethiopia through planting seedlings. The Agency also takes as a part of its duties to encourage awareness rising of children to build the culture of saving and getting benefitted in turn, he added.
On the other hand, the cooperative unions are playing principal role in supplying basic inputs for the infrastructure development such as construction of health centers, potable water wells, animals’ health posts, rural roads, and maintenance of schools as well as provision of transportation services. In doing so, they are discharging their social responsibility by filling the gaps created due to lack of government’s potential while making accessible development across the country, he added.
He further noted that the cooperative unions are mainly engaged in supplying basic commodities such as sugar, food items and edible oil to the lower income community members of rural and urban areas. Likewise, it is engaged in agro-processing, ecotourism and exporting their products that helps the nation gain additional income from foreign currency.
They are also striving to make sure the effectiveness of rural development and trying to transform the economy from agriculture led to industry led. To this end, they are working on small holder farmers incorporated in about 1,650 cooperative unions across the country to change their agricultural products to semi processed industry products aiming to raising their income. As the exporting capacity of the unions’ members is rising from time to time, it is better to back them change their products to semi or fully processed.
Moreover, the unions have also contributed a lot in resolving the shortage of commodities during COVID-19 pandemic by supplying various items to the market and discharged their responsibility to stabilize the local market and creating conducive environment throughout the country.
United, the cooperative unions along with the officials should repeat the victory of Adwa in the battle of poverty by further upgrading the activity underway; sustaining the economic development and assuring prosperity, he urged.
Minister of Agriculture, Oumer Husein, on his part said that the cooperative unions are improving the life of the community and beyond that they are making better activities in the economic and social arena in the country by doing their best in various structures.
Cooperative unions serve as the tools of poverty reduction in various countries and nowadays, they are creating conducive environment in their respective areas. On top of playing great role at national level, they are contributing for the efficient commercial transaction and daily activities of world economy, he added.
“Lasting development is unthinkable without the cooperative unions’ engagement in the economic activity. Therefore, in order to sustain the rapid economic growth and record more achievements in the economic and social development, active participation of the unions coupled with government’s effort is essential. To this end, we need positive thinkers and new creativity in the sector to realize prosperous nation that conquered poverty,” he said.
He further said that, advanced technology must be employed to bring structural change in the agricultural sector by providing value added products to the market both in quantity and quality. In line with this, creating fertile ground to the producers in market linkage is the duty of all time that realizes their beneficiary.
Though they have been playing significant role in stabilizing the market via supplying basic commodities with fair price, the cooperative unions are encircled by many challenges. The indistinguishable relation between administrative and members seen in some areas is one example.
Be it is, the Cooperative Agency awarded cooperative unions, members, officials and the media on the cooperative day celebrated nationally for the 13th and globally for the 99th time in appreciation of their effort for the successes registered in the economic and political arena, it was learned.
The Ethiopian Herald June 19/2021
