Unhappy with the state of many cooperatives, Labour Minister Dr Nanda Gopaul has said that corruption in such societies will be targeted as part of the ongoing efforts to make them accountable and viable.
Gopaul was speaking on Monday at the opening of a three-day workshop aimed at providing capacity building training towards improving the functioning of cooperatives, the Government Information Agency (GINA) reported.
The ministry has been seeking to address unprofessional conduct and mismanagement in some of the local co-operatives, with the aim of getting them to work more effectively for members, Gopaul said, noting some of the violations it has discovered within the societies over the past year. The ministry has found some reports on land and housing cooperatives very disturbing, such as illegal sale of house lots and state property, failure to conduct regular election, and failure to account for activities within the cooperatives, he revealed. “We will have to put to an end to these illicit activities… We are going to halt any act of corruption and indiscipline or those aimed at enriching a few rather than the collective,” he was quoted as saying by GINA.
“I cannot say that I am happy over the functioning and performance of many cooperatives in Guyana. A lot is left to be desired over the management and operation of many. There are rules, standard rules, most based on the Cooperative Acts and I am very unhappy over the failure of many of the cooperatives in Guyana to observe these Acts,” he added.
Gopaul emphasised the importance of accountability, saying that without it there will be no progress, especially if cooperatives are to be used for job creation and nation building. He said that the ministry will work hard to ensure that there is an accountable and a viable cooperative movement in Guyana, and that they get every support to ensure that they continue to be buoyant, to serve the interest of their members and to aid the development process.
The workshop was conducted at the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) Labour College at High Street, Kingston, with participants from the cooperative movement and local trade unions.
GINA said that the workshop was a collaborative effort between the Labour Ministry and International Labour Organisation (ILO) and forms part of the training programmes the ministry must provide, having signed on to the ILO’s Decent Work Country Programme, which seeks to promote decent work as a key component of national development strategies.
Other speakers at the opening were Permanent Secretary (PS) of the Labour Ministry Lorene Baird, ILO Specialist in Sustainable Enterprise Development and Job Creation Kelvin Sergeant, Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC) President Norris Witter, Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Guyana (FITUG) President Carvil Duncan and head of the employers’ association, the Consultative Association of Guyanese Industry (CAGI), Samuel Goolsarran.
GINA quoted Baird as saying that while there are hundreds of cooperative societies in Guyana, many have been defunct or are not functioning optimally. “…In this regard this workshop offers participants guidance on the path to sustainability by re-emphasising the importance of cooperatives,” she said.
She was hopeful that by the end of the workshop, participants would have a better understanding of the social roles of cooperatives and their importance to national development and would be equipped with the skills to foster entrepreneurship including the development of business ideas, plans and management needed to develop Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
According to GINA, during their brief address, heads of the trade union movement acknowledged the need for cooperation. They also recognised that there was need to revamp the cooperative movement, which has suffered due to mismanagement.
Witter said he felt assured that the participants would re-dedicate their energies towards revitalising the cooperative movement in Guyana, while adding that through their active involvement new life could be given to cooperatives.
Conveying similar sentiments, Duncan said that such initiatives as the workshop were important to the cooperative movement. He said, “We have a responsibility to ensure our members are educated to understand their roles and objectives. Once that is achieved the cooperative movement will take on a new dimension and the entrepreneurial spirit will be revived.”
Goolsarran, underscoring the value of the contribution that well managed cooperative enterprises can bring to the economy, was also optimistic that the training would motivate the participants so they can in turn strive for excellence in the operation and management of cooperatives.
GINA said that Sergeant, the ILO Specialist, said the workshop would discuss the implementation of the decent work country programme as part of the agenda of the workshop. He said, “We will look at the whole question of cooperatives, what is a cooperative, the economic and social function of cooperatives, the principles, ideas and practices of cooperatives, the international agencies that treat with cooperatives, SMEs-business planning, business ideas and SWAT analysis.”
