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Farmers' cooperative in Conflict - ridden Areas: The Experience Maguindanao

Farmers' cooperatives IN conflict - ridden PLACE:

The Maguindanao experience

By: Radzak A. Sam, DPA

Contrary to the notion that community organizations, such as cooperatives, will not work in a highly unstable, chaotic, and turbulent environment, this piece of work proved that they could still work and withstand development activities given some caveats pursuit of their work. This premise is founded on the research conducted by the author entitled "Farmers' Cooperatives Conflict - ridden Areas: The Maguindanao Experience "that highlighted the experiences of four farmers' cooperatives operating in conflict affected areas of Maguindanao, an impoverished province of Southern Philippines. The volatile peace and order condition in the area coupled with management problems among other things dragged cooperative flounder, and later, leading most them to shut down their operations. However, despite this scenario, there are still those that yielded viable projects, and has provided significant benefits to their members. Being puzzled about these things, the authors conducted a research study comparing the plights of the cooperative, and subsequently explanation given why, there are still those that can operate viable projects, and provide better services to their members, in contrast to that the operation failed, and later just "die a natural death."

SELECTION OF CASES FOR ANALYSIS cooperative

It took some doing to "scrutinize the chap from the channel" as it is, that is, pick the cooperative registered the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) in Maguindanao should be considered viable and no longer. After consulting Mr. Saptu Tutin, a CDA Specialist, a list cooperative comprising classifying non-viable and viable life. The main criteria used to designate the viability or non-viability is whether or not the cooperative will continue to provide services and implement activities for its member-farmers, that is, whether or not it is still active as a cooperative. In particular, the non-viable cooperatives are those that had previously active but was stopped because of work. Out of 1,010 agricultural cooperatives registered purpose CDA Maguindanao from l990 l998, only about eight (less than 1 percent of the total) were found to be still active. Others seem suspended or stopped operations altogether. A number are registered but never managed to start the operation.

To assess firsthand the state of cooperatives identified in the list, the visiting the organization has made and their officials to be interviewed. It was then decided to choose two of them, based on their income, the nature of service They offered, and the size of their membership, to represent viable coops. One is chosen from the first district of Maguindanao and the other from the second district. Two others chose to have once been active but had now become inactive due to a problem or the other, one from each district as well. There are then a total four cooperative with the research, namely, Integrated Farm Woodland Resort purpose Cooperative (WIFRMPC) in Sultan Kudarat Brar communities and irrigators that purpose Cooperative (BCIMPC) in Talayan, both active coops, and Kurintem Farmers' purpose Cooperative (KFMPC) in Datu Odin Sinsuat, and Cooperative in the municipality of Ampatuan (KBAI), these problems coops. In addition to the above criteria, the four selections, in particular, because they agreed to the study and are willing to help. Also, all are equally accessible and their membership is composed mainly of farmers.

Comparing Cooperative can live from Non-viable Ones: distinguishing features

 

Viable cooperatives sustained their operations because of the following characteristics:

1. Heavy family-based leadership as a key factor for coop viable operation.

 

WIFRMPC and BCIMPC continue to run partly because of strong leadership served to bond family members together. In the case of WIFRMPC, leadership gave Pahm clan of educators and professional cooperative gave a solid vision as a stimulus for its growth and development. In the case of BCIMPC, the Sultan's family, a respected traditional leading clan in the community, provided such leadership. In both the cooperative, strong leadership encourages unity and teamwork among the members and officers. It is this type of leadership that enabled the cooperative to endure in the midst of chaos in Maguindanao.

 

2. Dynamism and versatility in generating income activities lead to the same coop productivity and sustainability.

 

Flexibility in pursuit of economic activities, coupled with the resolve of both members and officials, appear to be critical for cooperative development. Both BCIMPC WIFRMPC and sought to diversify their economic projects and sources of income. The WIFRMPC, In addition to its fisheries, poultry, forestry, coffee, rice, corn and production activities, also engaged in rice, corn, and oil trading. It also derived income from operating resort's facilities. BCIMPC, otherwise, engaged in trading to supplement his income from rice and corn production. To conserve their resources, both cooperatives also stopped lending their services after the crop failures that plagued their members. WIFRMPC focused its resources on collecting its receivables. BCIMPC, in other hand, desires to be independent of the Land Bank's support for its programs.

3. Great use of resources (technical, financial and human) coop enhances productivity and sustainability.

 

BCIMPC WIFRMPC and both benefited from the training exposures of their members. WIFRMPC officers supervised their members' farming activities to ensure that they will apply the technical skills taught in this training. Sa BCIMPC, the Chairman took the lead role, serving as a model using the new technology. As a result, both the cooperative began to show positive earnings after an initial period of losses. They also both managed to continue to deliver services to their members despite the problem of unpaid loans.

 

4. Network and interactions contribute to both productivity and sustainability coop.

 

Both cooperatives grew and sustained networks and their relationship established with the institutions working for the cooperative development. Their members can benefit from these networks and relationships, support new technologies and techniques for increasing production.

5. Membership expansion increases paid up capital, which subsequently enhances productivity and sustainability coop.

 

Both cooperatives expanded membership, with WIFRMPC enjoying an average annual rise of 93 percent and BCIMPC, a 70 percent increase. More members meant corresponding natural additions to paid-up capital per cooperative helped enhance productivity and sustainability.

On the other hand, the cooperative failed to be dragged down by the following circumstances:

1. Leadership crisis leading to weakness and lack of emotional problems, dragging down the coops to failure.

 

When coop officers would not be responsible, the whole organization suffers. KMPCI officers' limited knowledge of the concepts made them quite cooperativism rely on the chairman to run the cooperative. When he left, the officer was at a loss. KBAI officer, on the other hand, allows the cooperative's founders (the ex-priest) to manipulate the organization for his personal ends, the leading cooperative ruin. The democratic processes that underpin the operations of cooperatives are not allowed to function properly.

2. Failure in implementing the project results no return of investment, non-payment of loans by borrowers, and not productive coop operations.

 

  Both cooperatives failed in implementing their projects. Management of helplessness confused crop failures that plagued the cooperative 'Members KMPCI management's spaciousness allows its cashiers to steal from the store coop; KBAI fell wiles of its founder to be taken from funds cooperative for his personal use and that the actions that led to the coop's members not to pay their debts.

3. Dole out mentality leads to unproductive (passive) coop.

 

Cooperative members, have exposed the government dole-outs in the past, sought to get out of repaying their loans by about it as nothing more than government gifts. This irresponsible position also led them to effectively abandon their obligations as members of their cooperative.

4. Non-use of technical skills acquired from training will lead to non-productive performance.

 

Coops failed unable to profit from the technical skills they were taught in training. For lack of resources, they are unable to provide material support to their members needed to upgrade their production methods.

5. Unsustained interaction network and deliberate lack of support mechanisms that can further enhance productivity and sustainability coop.

 

Of the cooperative was able to increase and sustain the network and each contact was established with the development agency working for the cooperative development.

6. Lack record-keeping meant the absence of reliable information about the coops' financial condition, making them more vulnerable to corruption.

 

Persons responsible positions in both the cooperative failed to keep reliable records of their business transactions. In the case of KMPCI, the records maintained by the official record does not jibe with the records of payment by the cashier. The case is similar KBAI release was made without following proper methods.

 

Concluding Observations

The research came up with the conclusion for cooperative viably operate in conflict-ridden areas, the following organizational factors appear to be critical: a) leadership, ie, strong family-based leadership, b) dynamism and versatility in income generating activities, illustrating both a certain degree of flexibility but also highlight the resolve coop members to succeed, and efficient use of resources (technical, financial, and right).

On the other hand, the traditional factors that is generally thought to apply to all cooperatives, such as goals and objectives, and organization and management may not be critical at all. As the study showed, these factors will not have any bearing on either the viability or non-viability conditions.

Institutional network of cooperative and assistance extended by the national government agencies and international organizations proved to be contributory factors in the coop until viability The acquired technology is applied productively. However, the links with non-governmental organizations, local government units and coop federations and unions, is not critical for survival of Maguindanao coops in contrast to the more positive experiences of cooperatives in Bulacan and Davao del Sur (Gaffud, 1995).

The experience of cooperative in Maguindanao, the contributions of private institutions proved to be critical to enhancing the viability coop, contrary to traditional belief that they play no paper. Private institutions assisted cooperatives in acquiring technical skills and marketing their produce.

Finally, while the action environment (political, economic and social) appeared to negatively impact the cooperative operations, their effects are not so great as to threaten the safety of operations coop life or no charge. The cooperative was able to apply compensating strategies to reverse whatever stifling forces that can be attributed to such environmental factors.

 

References:

Gaffud, Rumualdo B.

1995 Peoples strengthening Enterprise Market action and promoting Self-Reliance: A Framework for collaboration between the Cooperative and Local Government (Focus on the experience of cooperatives and Provincial governments in Davao Province, Bulacan). Doctoral dissertation. UP-CPA

Sam, Radzak A.

2002 "Farmers' Cooperatives in the conflict-ridden Areas: The Maguindanao Experience", a research dissertation submitted National College of Public Administration and Governance (NCPAG), University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines.

CDA Annual Report, 1998

Interview:

Tutin Sapto, Cooperative Specialist   Maguindanao, September 14, 2000

About the Author

A former faculty member of Mindanao State University-Maguindanao, and Cotabato City State Polytechnic College, Cotabato City.Given the Oppurtunity to go out from the country for teaching position, the author joined the School of Social Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia with an academic rank of  a Senior Lecturer.

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