AN EVALUATION OF THE ROLE OF COOPERATIVE AND THRIFT SOCIETIES TOWARDS RURAL DEVELOPMENT OF OWO COMMUNITY, ONDO STATE

ABSTRACT

Development is central to societal advancement, and various indicators determine what can be regarded as development. Moreover, there are varying instruments or factors that influence development of society, including thrift and cooperative societies. This study evaluated the role of thrift and co-operative societies to the development of rural communities. The study was conducted in Owo community of Ondo State of Nigeria. Four hundred respondents were selected using multiple sampling techniques. They were drawn from the OWO Cooperative Multipurpose Union Limited. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the respondents, while Key informant Interview was conducted on Executive members of the cooperative. Descriptive Statistical analysis was accomplished by means of frequency distribution and percentages. The result of the analysis showed that the co-operative society strategy is successful and should indeed be encouraged in the development of the rural communities. The study showed that the co-operative society influenced greatly development processes and the growth in size of the rural business in the rural community as well as infrastructural development and empowerment initiatives. The study recommends that thrifts and cooperative societies should be encouraged as the benefits of a co-operative society as a driver of the socioeconomic development of rural communities cannot be overemphasized; hence the need for synergy and the economic efficiency gains to be derived from co-operative societies.