Reducing Unemployment Through Co-Operative Movement

1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Co-operative is a basis for overall transformation of citizenry social and economic problems.
According to Berko (1987 :29), co-operative society is a voluntary and democratic association of persons, with variable membership and variable capital whose members pooled themselves and their resources together on mutual and self help basis to form a business enterprise which seeks to solve the socio-economic problem(s) of these members by directly providing goods and services to them in their capacity as either the owner/customer or owner – employees of the cooperative enterprise.
According to Amahalu (2005 :2), cooperative is defined as an association usually incorporated with economic aims, formed by or for persons or co operations, having common needs, approximately equal voice in management, making approximately equal or proportional contributions to capital, deriving proportionate services and benefits from it.
Co-operative in order to promote the welfare of their members involve themselves in most tangible projects like building of houses, building of schools, building of hospitals, building of recreation centers, markets and building of industries. Co-operative serves as a hold to company and local development agency; it also seek to provide a community owned structure.

1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEMS
Today, there is vast unemployment in Nigeria and Enugu North in particular. After many years of democracy there are graduates of 15 (fifteen) years standing, that room the street in search of white-collar jobs that don’t exist. Unemployment is still on the increased irrespective of federal government budget to curb the scourge. In the year 2000 the Federal government budgeted N10 billion and N20 billion in 2001 to deal with unemployment yet, unemployment increases on daily basis. Both the state and federal governments are lunching out a lot of programmes, on small scale business enterprise, yet unemployment is increasing.
However, the fact remain that no country can succeed in providing a reasonable standard of living for her citizens. It is now obvious that the only option left of us is to adopt the socio – economic model of mutual self help whereby unemployed individuals can voluntarily join together to achieve a common goal through the formation of co-operative enterprise.
Co-operative we know plays multiple roles as institutional frame work for allocating scarce resources, stimulating economic growth and enhancing economic welfare. It raises the income level of the people by providing income earning opportunities. Many reasons have been given for this critical situation concerning jobs, and such reasons include rapid growth of population in our country, the movement of capital to the cheap labour and the impact of new technology.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
This research has the major objectives of finding in comparative terms on the heavy promotion and creation of cooperative enterprise and exploit the economic benefits associated with them in Enugu North Local Government Area from 2000 – 2004.
Specific Objectives Include:
– To identify the socio – economic characteristic associated with cooperative societies.
– To identify the support for modern farming investment for industrial development and expansion of market through cooperative movement.
– To examine the volume of unemployment created by cooperative society.
– To assess the volume of viable cooperative society.
– To identify the problems of cooperative movement in creating job opportunities in Nigeria and Enugu North in particular.
– To make recommendations on how to improve cooperative societies in order to meet the demand of reducing unemployment.
– To find out possible project cooperative can be involve in.
– To find out the number of people employed by cooperative society in Enugu North from 2000 – 2004.

1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
There is the need for reducing unemployment in our society and Enugu North in particular and the only way out is through cooperative movement. This analytical study shows the extent of some particular proposals for solutions to these problem of unemployment in Enugu North Areas and also serve as a basis for offering, informed suggestions for improvement on its social-economic development and growth.
It is envisaged that the findings, suggestions and recommendations of this study will be beneficial to all members and non members of co-operative society and government as well. Specifically, this research will go a long way to encourage people to join co-operative society.
To further the scope of this study, discussion and the possible means of efficient implementation will be based on the followings:
– Enhance economic, social and cultural situation of strata within limited resources and opportunities as well as to promote their initiatives.
– Improve social condition and provide social services in the areas of housing, education, electricity, health and communication.
– Increase personal and national wealth through campaigning against waste. It also impact the element for democratic control of economic activity.
Therefore, since cooperative thinks about the enhancement of their members well being as their prime ideology, it has to work towards the achievement of this target. Also this research study is primarily concerned in addition to the formal pronouncement of cooperative distribution on how to make them functional that is providing as social-economic development and growth thereby creating job opportunities as the prime ingredient to achieving its aim.

1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
– What are the number of people employed by cooperative societies in Enugu North?
– What are the projects cooperative can involve in?
– Why do people form a joint co-operative societies?
– What are the problems of cooperative societies in Enugu North?
– What are the number of viable cooperative society?
– What are the socio-economic benefits of belonging to cooperative society.

1.6 SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
The scope of the research is Enugu North Local Government Area of Enugu State. The research is to determine the impact and effect of unemployment reduction through cooperative movements/societies with specific emphasis on ‘ENUGU NORTH STAFF CREDIT THRIEFT AND LOANS SOCIETY’.
The research covers the operation of co-operation movement with the intension of finding out to what extent they can create employment.
In the course of generating this work, the researcher faced several handicaps which include non cooperative attitude of some officials visited which resulted in not giving all the information required about their operations inadequacy of data. Most of the officers visited were not on sit despite several visitation made by the researcher.
Finance has been a problem to the completion of this research. It limited frequent travels which ought to have made to the sampled cooperative societies.
Despite all this limitation the researcher tried to control several errors which would have affected the findings.