The Story of Robert Owen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPy_lK9HRys&feature=youtu.be

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2g4Hjzv88Ko

' සෙබළාණනේ ඔබ මැරුණා නොවේ : කුසුමක් වෙලා ඔබ පිපුණා ළයේ '

Ukulima Housing Cooperative Society Ltd

Mission & Vision

Our Mission

• To engage in the business of Real Estate Development including developing of land, constructing and marketing of the same, with an intention of serving the society and community in general with total dedication, commitment, and focused purpose while maintaining the highest standards of excellence.

Our Vision

• To be the leading Co-operative in Real Estate development in Kenya, with continuous dedication to quality and total customer satisfaction.

Products & Services

1. Purchase and development of real estate and properties by undertaking value addition activities e.g. road works, water and electricity, reticulation and environmental conservation.
2. Construction of residential houses and commercial centers.
3. Enter into contracts with members for the sale or lease of land and building acquired by the society in pursuance of its objects on such terms and conditions as may from time to time be determined.
4. Lending members loans for real estate development.
5. Employ architect, builders, water and sanitation contractors, issue plan negotiate and contract for services for light and power, water drainage, roads, and generally do all such things as are necessary and customary for the acquisition of land and its development for housing purposes.

Membership

1. The membership of the Society is open to the following;

   • All members of the public who have attained age of 18 years and are of sound mind and not bankrupt.
   • A corporate body, social welfare associations, groups registered with the relevant bodies.

   Admission to Membership

   • An individual applicant shall be admitted to membership on application and on payment of an entrance fee of Kshs 2,000 and payment in full for at least 100 shares of Kshs 100 each(Kshs.10,000) and for minimum shares as shall be fixed by the Delegates meeting from time to time.
   • Corporate bodies, Welfare Associations and groups shall be admitted on application and payment of an entrance fee of Kshs.5, 000 and payment in full for at least 500 shares of Kshs 100 each(Kshs.50,000) and for minimum shares as shall be fixed by the Delegates meeting from time to time.

   • http://ukulimahousing.co.ke/

OECD Supports Strengthening Agricultural Cooperatives in Kazakhstan

BY SALTANAT JANENOVA in OPINIONS on 23 FEBRUARY 2015

The OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Programme, launched in 2008, helps accelerate economic reforms and improve the business climate to achieve sustainable economic growth and employment in two regions: Central Asia and Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus. The Kazakhstan Regional Competitiveness Project aims to promote regional competitiveness and inclusive growth in Kazakhstan’s regions. The project works with sub-national administrations and regional stakeholders to diversify sources of investment and increase private sector competitiveness through the design and implementation of reforms to improve the business climate.

As part of the Kazakhstan Regional Competitiveness Project, the OECD prepared a Policy Handbook for Strengthening Agricultural Cooperatives in Kazakhstan, which provides guidance for the government of Kazakhstan on the necessary reforms to strengthen agricultural cooperatives and thereby help small-scale producers overcome market failures and integrate into local supply chains. This policy handbook was presented and peer reviewed at the 2014 OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Round Table in November in Paris, a policy network that brings together high-level representatives and technical experts from Eurasian countries, OECD member countries and partner organisations. The Round Table meets annually and serves as a platform for peer review and knowledge sharing on the implementation of competitiveness reforms. Kazakhstan’s delegation to Paris was led by Yerbol Orynbayev, assistant to the President of Kazakhstan, along with Alikhan Baimenov, chairman of the Steering Committee of the Regional Hub of Civil Service of Central Asia; and Arman Yevniyev, executive secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture.

In Astana, this handbook was presented on Dec. 10, 2014, to the Ministry of Agriculture, KazAgro, the Fund for Financial Support of Agriculture, farmers’ associations and other relevant stakeholders. During the round-table meeting, Minister of Agriculture Assylzhan Mamytbekov noted that all recommendations of the OECD coincide with the draft law on agricultural cooperation prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture, as well as a number of other changes in the legislation. The project was carried out with the financial support of the European Union and the government of Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan has the second highest availability of arable land per capitain the world, with over 77 percent of its territory classified as agricultural land. Agriculture plays an important role in Kazakhstan’s economy, society and political system. It accounted for 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2013, and was the largest sector by far in terms of employment (24 percent). In spite of their important contribution to agricultural production, small farms in Kazakhstan face numerous structural size-related disadvantages that impede their ability to access supply chains, compete with large-scale agricultural enterprises and exploit their inherent productivity advantages. The main obstacles include deficiencies in basic rural infrastructure; limited access to agricultural education, research and development, and extension services; credit constraints; and a lack of mobility in the market for agricultural land.

Agricultural cooperatives can be an effective way to enhance the competitiveness of small-scale producers and improve the impact of policies targeting small-scale agriculture. Cooperatives are bottom-up organisations, created by farmers to overcome market failures and increase the welfare of members.

Agricultural cooperatives are underdeveloped in Kazakhstan, and many registered cooperatives are inactive or ineffective due to poorly designed policies to stimulate their establishment and growth. Cooperatives are often established solely to take advantage of state subsidies and government support programmes, and do not provide real benefits to their members. Several challenges need to be addressed in the short term in order to facilitate the development of agricultural cooperatives in Kazakhstan.

First, there are weaknesses in the current policy environment. The current legal framework is unnecessarily complex, with five separate laws on cooperatives. In addition, tax policies can lead to double taxation of cooperative members, creating disincentives to the formation of new cooperatives.

Second, farmers have limited confidence in cooperatives and little awareness of their potential benefits. Kazakhstan’s Soviet legacy means farmers automatically associate the term “cooperative” with a production cooperative, a remnant of the former collective farm system. They do not understand the concept of cooperatives in the context of a market economy. Their experience with collective agriculture during the Soviet period means they have little confidence in the potential benefits of cooperation.

Third, there is a lack of targeted financial support for agricultural cooperatives in Kazakhstan. Cooperatives require substantial investment during the early stages of development, as well as financing for short-term working capital and long-term investment needs. Currently the main focus of government policy for agricultural cooperatives is top-down financial support, which is primarily provided through subsidies and concessional loans to cooperatives. These policies have been largely ineffective in stimulating the formation of a functioning cooperative movement.

Long-term challenges will also need to be tackled to ensure the sustainability of agricultural cooperatives in Kazakhstan. For instance, there are significant skills shortages in rural Kazakhstan, particularly in the agricultural sector. This is partly driven by low agricultural wages, which makes it difficult for cooperatives to find skilled employees and managers. There are no targeted educational programmes to train cooperative members in operational issues and support cooperative managers in areas relating to governance. Furthermore, input suppliers, processing facilities and retailers have little interest in selling inputs to or purchasing outputs from smallholders. In Kazakhstan, there are no policies or programmes in place to encourage these large players to work with cooperatives. Additionally, there is a lack of proactive behaviour towards small-scale farmers, such as forward contracting, renting transport equipment and supplying households and small-scale individual farms with technical and financial assistance.

In order to strengthen agricultural cooperatives in Kazakhstan in the short term, the OECD has recommended that the government of Kazakhstan take the following actions, based on international experience: reform the policy environment, create awareness and trust, and provide targeted financial support.

To reform the policy environment, the OECD recommends reforming the legal framework for cooperatives and simplifying registration procedures, as well as reforming the tax code and reducing the tax burden for cooperatives. To create awareness and trust, the recommendation is to educate small farmers in rural areas on the benefits of cooperatives and provide information services and technical assistance to those setting up cooperatives. Finally, targeted financial support can be provided by developing targeted financing instruments for cooperatives and encouraging greater private sector participation in cooperative financing.

The OECD Policy Handbook on Strengthening Agricultural Cooperatives will be published by the OECD press in early 2015.

The author is a policy consultant and an instructor at the Graduate School of Public Policy of Nazarbayev University.

Tajikistan cooperative

The story starts...

Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, claimed independence in 1997. Since then the country has grown in stability and is building a trade economy, partly with the help of foreign aid. 

Sherzod Abdurakhmano, OVCD Project Manager, Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation, tells us how a group of organic farmers have undergone their own ‘independence’ and moved from NGO assistance (and donor funding) in their early days to, just this year, establishing their own stand-alone co-operative.

A land right for organic agriculture

Tajikistan is an agrarian country, three quarters of the total population lives in rural areas. and the agricultural sector dominates the national economy. Agriculture is the most important sector in Tajikistan, providing the population with food, industrial raw materials, and jobs. The Republic is mainly engaged in growing grains and crops such as cotton, potatoes, vegetables, melons, grapes and other fruits. The government is encouraging 'value adding' within the country rather than the direct sales of raw materials and farm commodities out of Tajikistan. 

The growing conditions are favourable for agriculture and the quality of the produce is greatly improved by the climate. A hot - and most importantly - dry climate in Tajikistan drives up the sugar content of fruits and vegetables so it is much higher than similar products from other countries. Tajik fruits and vegetables are becoming recognized as being particularly sweet. 

Establishing a co-operative

The Bio Kishovarz Co-operative started life as the ‘Organic Value Chain Development Project’ (OVCD) an initiative of the Interchurch Organisation for Co-operation Development (ICCO) & Kerk in Actie, and HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation.

“Organic farming is new for Tajikistan. When the project started most of the farmers couldn’t understand it. We put a lot effort into introducing farmers to organic agriculture and its benefits. OVCD played the role of facilitator and mediator between operators, supporters and influencers of a chain. OVCD linked farmers with international buyers as well.  Today many people know about it and are expressing an interest in growing organic products”.  Sherzod Abdurakhmanov, OVCD Project Manager, HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation, Tajikistan.

The objective of the project was always to enable autonomy amongst the Tajik farmers. NGO and donor support was intended to catalyse a ‘system change’ in the Tajik farming sector (particularly in cotton), allowing farmers to increase their incomes and improve livelihoods in a sustainable way through alternative value chains. For more information on the OVCD project principles see here

The new season started with very good news for the organic farmers in Tajikistan. As of 10 February 2012, the ‘Bio-Kishovarz’ Co-operative was officially registered. The Co-op was originally made up of 189 bio (organic) farmers. The biggest motivation for the farmers to form a co-operative was the opportunity to share problems and solve them together. Another reason is the fast growing organic sector in the Republic. Over the course of the year, the newly established Bio Kishovarz Co-op is expecting to grow by 400 farmers.  So by the end of the year the total number of farmers will be 589.

Already many farmers are experiencing the benefits of organic farming; including an increase in land productivity, and an improvement in the quality of their products. According to the country’s official statistics, the average salary in the agricultural sector of Tajikistan is $32 USD per month.  Organic farmers in 2011 were able to earn approximately $200 USD per month, which is a great incentive to continue practicing organic farming!

During the establishment of the Bio Kishovarz Co-operative, the principles of Fairtrade were carefully taken into consideration and today the farmers in the co-operativeare looking forward together to a bright future. 

As the co-operative evolves, staff are keen to build partnerships with customers and work within these relationships to keep improving what they do.

Cotton is central

Cotton has always been one of Tajikistan’s most important export products. For this reason, cotton has always occupied pride of place among all other crops. 

Tajik cotton fiber is characteristically long and strong. There are seven species of cotton being grown in the country. Three belong to the filamentary breed, bred from Gossypium Barbadense L. The other four species are derived from Gossypium Brisytum L., selected in the Soviet Union.

The Bio Kishovarz Co-operative produces medium to long fiber cotton, and is certified according to the European standards (EC) No 834/2007. 

Diversification

Other crops grown in rotation with the cotton and as part of the farm system are: alfalfa, maize, safflower, sorghum, tomatoes, and wheat.  Farmers, inspired by this year’s visit to the big organic trade show ‘Biofach’ in Nuremberg and discussions with potential buyers, are planning to introduce new crops including: mung beans, chick peas, peanuts and soybeans. 

They are now at the stage of researching the technical and organoleptic features of these crops. Studies are being carried out to determine the qualities the products might exhibit compared to products from other countries; and to determine their competitive advantage for the export market.

Partnership is key

The Bio Kishovarz Co-operative is proof of how much can be achieved in partnership. ICCO and HELVETAS Swiss Intercoopertion started the ball rolling, but the Tajik farmers have embraced the opportunity and look forward to an independent, co-operative future in charge of their own destiny.