INTRODUCTION
Throughout the world, co-operative societies exist virtually in all economics be it socialism or capitalism. Co-operatives are found in the developed nations and underdeveloped nations and people engage themselves in one co-operative activity or the other.
Co-operation universally is the art of people working together to achieve a common goal or objective. The goals maybe economic or social in nature and the co-operative maybe organized formally or not. This practice can be traced back to the early men who organized themselves co-operatively while some guarding the care some hunting while others involves in swimming and roasting their animals. The women took care of the children, fetching of water and firewood. These, they were doing in order to achieve what they would not have achieved individually. Our fore-fathers up held this tradition in their activities in different communities like cultivating hands, building of house e.t.c. collectively: In the rural areas today, the practice is still in existence. Infact, it is the pattern of life there. All the communities have one type of co=operative activity or the other. This has been the practice prior to the introduction of co-operative societies that operate in accordance with the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA).
The colonial masters introduced the modern type of co-operative society in Nigeria many decades ago. With the introduction, there are many types of co-operative societies in Nigeria today viz. the agricultural co-operative society, the thrift and credit co-operative society, the multi purpose co-operative society, the marketing co-operative society, the multi-purpose co-operative society e.t.c. These co-operatives are essentially established to ensure that the rural areas are developed since co-operative societies aid in rapid development of the rural areas. These, they do through their activities which will be later highlighted. The cardinal objective is to help in the development of the living conditions of the rural dwellers through the provision of funds and vital amenities in the rural areas. The co-operative thrift and credit society is one of the co-operative societies of the modern time that ensures that the rural areas are developed. It is a co-operative society that consist of individuals who voluntarily organize and inspire themselves into undertaking regular savings on part of their earning and lending such to members at low interest rate. It is a well known fact that most of the rural areas lack baking facilities, so this type of co-operative society performs by the banking functions. These banking functions performed by the co-operative credit and thrift society influence rapid development at the rural areas. Some of these functions include serving as depositor of people’s saving with interest, credit lending to members e.t.c.
The Umuchu co-operative thrift and credit society has made it possible for the people of Umuchu to benefit from this concept of co-operation through the introduction of co-operative thrift and credit society to help faster rapid development of Umuchu autonomous community which can be regarded as a typical rural area. During its inauguration, the Umuchu co-operative thrift and credit society stated its objectives as ensuring that development is brought to Umuchu community by helping in the provision of amenities to help in alleviating the co-operative society has not really achieved their cardinal objective for its establishment which is rural development. This is due to some impediments hindering it from all indications, the level of this encumbrances is high why the co-operative society has been unable to advance further in the execution of some projects it embarked upon.
Therefore, this work will critically work into those problems that hinder the co-operative society from achieving their goals. The research work will also come out with the ways forward for the co-operative society the research is assuming that the problems might be inadequate planning, inadequate funds poor management, poor organization, lack of co-ordination on the attitude of members.
1.1STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Today in the rural areas, there is high level of economic hardship from economic depressions. All aspects of life in the rural areas are affected in one way or the other. The rural dwellers suffer as a result of this. And the height of it is that, the level of development in these rural areas are too poor, the government cares less about the conditions of the rural dwellers. They are left to wallow in severe object poverty without hope of development. The level of growth and the provision of these infrastructural facilities are relatively too poor. The consequences of this being that the populace at the rural areas suffer.
Nigeria and other developing nations have the greater populace at the rural areas but the greater irony of it being that those rural areas are not developed. For this reason, co-operative societies are therefore established by the rural dwellers as an efficient way of achieving development at the grassroots. Yet, this objective has not been achieved due to some problems.
1.2 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
Rural development has scope that is broad elastic, and it depends on the interaction of many forces such as the objectives of the programme, the availability of resources for planning and implementation e.t.c. In developing countries, such as Nigeria, rural development projects will include agricultural set-up projects, rural water supply projects e.t.c. based on the domain of rural development.
The following are the purposes for co-operative societies emergences.
1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The following will serve as research questions
1.4 STATEMENT OF HYPOTHESES
Ho: The co-operative societies have never created any employment opportunities to rural dwellers.
Hi: The co-operative societies have created some employment opportunities to rural dwellers.
Ho: Co-operative societies have not helped in increasing commodity out-put and production.
Hi: Co-operative societies have helped in increasing commodity out-put and production.
1.5 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
This theory was propounded by Frederick Taylor, Henry Fayol, Max webber, L. Uruick, Jautes C. Mooney and Recley and Tech in the late 19th
and early part of the 20th
century. They laid emphasis on the importance of principles for the design of a logical structure of organization and saw the principle as a set of rules offering general solution to common problem of organization and management.Relating to the tenets of the co-operative societies as agents of rural development. This practice can be traced back to the early men who themselves co-operatively while living in the care for them to achieve their collective and individual goals. These co-operative are essentially established to ensure that the rural areas are developed since co-operative societies aid in rapid development of the rural areas.
1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Co-operative is a member-owned and controlled business that operates for the mutual benefit of its members. Co-operative operate across all sectors and include agriculture, food distribution and retailing, child care, credit unions, purchasing, worker-owned, housing, healthcare, energy and telecommunications co-operatives. Co-operative promote the fullest possible participation in the economic and social development of all people and are a major economic force in developed countries and a powerful business model in developing ones. The research work will also enumerate ways through which co-operative societies will help in ensuring the development of the rural areas in particular.
Finally the study will serve as literature for students studying co-operative related courses.
1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The study was restricted to Umuchu co-operatives thrift and credit society in Aguata Local Government area of Anambra State. The result generated here will be generalized for other co-operative societies as agent of rural development is very wide in scope. The research will confine thrift and credit co-operative society.
1.8 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
The under listed factors are the basis limitations the researcher observed from this study.
Time is a limiting factor to this research work. As a result of inconsistency in the academic system, time was short and it was not possible to deal extensively with the topic within the limited time.
Finance is another limiting factor there was also the problem of finance which seriously affected this research work. The research was handicapped by finance with which to travel to different parts of the local government to gather information.
1.9 DEFINITION OF TERMS