CO - OPERATION AND AGRICULTURE (TAAVON)
Year:2009 | Volume:20 | Issue:202-203|Papers Count:10

Development of cooperatives requires strengthening of the foundations of cooperative companies, providing the grounds for development of cooperatives and cooperation morals, identifying the effective ways of propagation of cooperation culture and bringing a change to the existing attitudes of the public. This study was carried out in surveying method with the aim of improvement of cooperation morals, making an analysis of public attitude, and their participation for the establishment of cooperatives in eastern Azarbaijan province. Statistical population of this study consisted of cooperatives, union, and residents of the towns in the Eastern Azarbajian province. Measurement means was questionnaire and the information needed was obtained in stratified accompanied by simple and systematic random sampling methods from among 442 persons.The results show that 65% of the population of the province has intention for establishment of cooperatives. They suggest some top priority solutions such as financial support to cooperatives early in their establishment, improvement of scientific capabilities of manpower of cooperatives, optimal performance of the cooperatives, provision of optimal service and production of high quality products, commitment to cooperation principles, and facilitation of the process for joining the cooperatives.

This study was carried out in surveying method and effort was made to consider the elements taking role in the achievement of handicraft cooperatives in the city of Kerman. Statistical universe of this study consisted of 10 cooperative companies acting in Kerman in 2007.According to the results obtained under this research, 70% of the cooperatives studied hereunder had fully successful performances, 16.7% of the cooperatives were to some extent successful, and only 13.3% of these cooperatives were determined to have failed in their activities.Moreover, from among the independent variables studies herein, such aspects as the attitude of members toward the observance of cooperative principles, holding of training courses and regular participation of members in the courses, the cooperation and protection by various foundations, establishment of general assembly and observance of the resolutions passed therein, timely provision of raw materials, and granting of material and immaterial rewards to the members had a significant relation with the dependent variable of this study (the achievement of handicraft cooperatives).

This study was carried out with the purpose of assessment of manpower productivity in the cooperative companies of Kermanshah Province. The statistical population included all the staff members of agro-industrial cooperatives i.e., 179 persons in 2005 that were chosen in random-stratified sampling method. The study consisted of two phases that is, measurement of manpower productivity (using Cab-Douglass production function) and identification of the elements contributing to manpower production (by Wallis cross call method), comparison of the effects of variables (multiple comparison test) and determination of the correlation between variables (spearman's correlation coefficient). The results show that manpower productivity is negative and equal -0.46.Moreover, seven elements of training, stimulus and innovation, work commitment, management, legality and discipline, thrift and suitable system of payment contribute to manpower productivity.

As a means available to rural management, authority is a fully dynamic phenomenon. The contemporary history of Iranian villages indicates that authority and power have, as controlling measures in respect of rural affairs, been practiced in various forms within three distinct time periods.In the period before the land reforms of the year 1962, authority was conferred upon aldermen (chiefs of Villages) in line with the protection of benefits of land owners. Chiefs of villages were in fact the means of establishment and maintenance of an order in villages within the period. Within the period from land reform and the Islamic Revolution of the year 1979, the authority and power that manifested itself in the presence of chiefs of villages began to fade away along with the decline of power of major landlords in Iran and village masters were appointed as official representatives of the government. After the Islamic revolution bow ever, a new foundation was formed in villages that were called Islamic council. Islamic councils have the responsibility of controlling the affairs of villages with the authority that is based on public participation.The present article has concluded that establishment and maintenance of order in rural communities has in all the aforesaid three periods, been involving special problems and in our days also Iranian villages suffer the absence of true management in spite of the presence of an official managerial foundation in each village. The collation to this social problem seems to be the creation of a bond between the rural controlling foundations and the overall structure of the society.

It is indispensable to reorganize various organizations in the form of an open system of intercommunicating units. A more controversial aspect of this process in the developing countries is minimization of the governmental engagements. This is because a majority believes that assignment of governmental activities to the public (private and cooperative sectors) has brought economic growth and efficiency in these countries. On the other hand experience shows that cooperatives have played a major role in reorganizing dispersed and seemingly minor forces.This retrospective applied research was carried out with the aim of identification and differentiation of the governmental activities that might be assigned to cooperative sector in Khouzestan province and also with the purpose of assessment of their inclination. According to the articles 3, 29 and 30 of constitutional law of the I.R.I, governmental departments and organizations may take action for minimization of engagement subject to the provisions of article 88 (regulation of part of financial regulations of the government). The findings of this study show that a majority of organizations intend to assign part of their public and administrative activities to cooperative sector and keeping their specific activating (policy determination and sovereignty) within their own domain. In some cases, they approve of common activities as well.

Considering the importance of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurs, it is essential to support them in all sectors, including agriculture. The purpose of this paper was to study the factors that contribute to the success of entrepreneurs in agricultural sector of Zanjan province and to provide solutions for supporting them. As an applied study, it was made in surveying method. The statistical universe consisted of agricultural entrepreneurs in Zanjan (N=94). Questionnaire was developed to collect the necessary data. The date was analyzed using SPSS/14. Based on the results more than 81 percent of entrepreneurs were households. The main effective factors in success of agricultural entrepreneurs were: self confidence, creativity and innovation, positive thinking and capability of opportunities. The results showed that respondents had poor knowledge of regard cooperation laws. Based on the results of the study, the most important solutions for encouraging entrepreneurship in agriculture are prevention of price infraction, rent seeking and bribery, and participation of entrepreneurs in economic processes.

To understand the concept of ‘new generation’ co-operatives it is useful to look first at ‘traditional’ co-operatives. This is because the new generation co-operatives have developed in response to perceived limitations associated with traditional co-operatives. The concept of a new generation co-operative can be somewhat elusive if not seen as a response to the limitations of traditional co-operatives. It is an evolving concept, and what might have been regarded as ‘new’ some ten years ago may now be seen as ‘old’.In this paper a distinction is made between new generation cooperatives and hybrid cooperatives. A distinction is also made between hybrid co-operatives which have members and investors within the one business entity (the co-operative), and multiple business structures where a co-operative holds a shareholding in an investor-oriented-firm (IOF) that undertakes value adding and consumer marketing. Some commentators group all of these alternative structures together as ‘new generation co-operatives’ on the basis that they are all attempts at overcoming limitations of traditional co-operatives. However, although they are sufficiently different to require separate analysis.

Co-operatives are enterprises that exist to provide economic services to their members. They could emerge, theoretically, in almost any sector of the economy and in any time and community setting in modern history. And yet, they do not emerge at all times and places: historically, the development of co-operatives has been clustered in certain eras, in certain fields of activity, and in certain regions. There are numerous reasons for this clustering, but one of them is external to the co-operatives themselves and their immediate economic concerns. Where large numbers of co-operatives have been created, this has usually been due, if not to state action from above, then to the activities of social movements.The importance of social movements has been neglected both in analysis of current prospects for cooperative development, and in cooperatives understanding of their own history. In developed countries with mature co-operative movements, co-operative history tends to be institutionalized: the social movement context is lost or forgotten. In developing countries, the state has frequently played a large role and has often attempted to create co-operatives without attention to surrounding social movements or the lack thereof.To appreciate the role of social movements means re-thinking cooperative history, with direct implications for all those interested today in the creation of new co-operatives or in the revitalization of old ones.