Clarifying the superiority of new-style cooperatives

During the working session with the Cooperative Alliance early last week, the Supervisory Delegation of the National Assembly Standing Committee also requested to clarify the superiority of new-style cooperatives in order to truly bring economic efficiency to farming households and protect the rights of farming households when participating in the agricultural product value chain.

Hung Long and Hung Nguyen agricultural cooperatives and members test and evaluate rice production process. Illustrative photo

In the process of building new rural areas, cooperative economic activities play an important role in improving the lives and incomes of farmers. In many localities, cooperatives have become one of the effective models for preventing poverty relapse.

According to the President of the Vietnam Cooperative Alliance, Vo Kim Cu, agricultural cooperatives have been innovating in their methods of operation, applying technical advances to production, and affirming the role of cooperative economics for member households.

Notably, some prominent large-scale cooperative unions such as: Ho Chi Minh City Trade Cooperative Union (Saigon Co.op) has a nationwide reach, annual revenue of over 1 billion USD, contributes thousands of billions of VND to the budget, and creates jobs for more than 10,000 workers.

Reality has shown that the role of cooperatives in the collective economy is undeniable. However, cooperatives have not yet developed commensurate with their potential, advantages, goals and requirements. The progress of cooperatives in recent times has been slow in both quantity and quality.

The main reason, according to Vice President of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Truong Thi Ngoc Anh, is that the mindset of the old cooperative model is still deeply rooted in the people's hearts. We have not yet changed the perception of contributing rice to cook rice together when participating in cooperatives - Ms. Anh emphasized.

Sharing the same view, Deputy Chairman of the Economic Committee Mai Xuan Hung stated that in reality, farmers still do not see any difference between old-style cooperatives and new-style cooperatives. Many people still understand that joining a cooperative means contributing their means of production to the cooperative, and when it comes to dividing the results and benefits, every household will enjoy them equally. This can be seen as the most obvious obstacle that makes farmers not interested in cooperatives.

According to Mr. Mai Xuan Hung, the old-style cooperatives only have cooperative and member relations, there is no household economy, in other words, the old-style cooperative model negates the household economy. Meanwhile, the new-style cooperatives are organizations based on the association of individuals and households providing input and output services, stages of the production process, without losing or eliminating the household economy.

Vegetable production at Hung Dong Cooperative, Vinh City. Illustrative photo.

That is, when participating in a new type of cooperative, assets, capital, and land still belong to the members and the cooperative's most important task is to provide inputs and outputs for the production activities of its members. On the other hand, new type cooperatives also play an important role in connecting farmers with the State, scientists, and businesses in the Four Houses linkage.

If each individual household does not have enough potential to link 4 households, the Cooperative is the organization that takes charge. Correct awareness of the organization, operation and role of the new type of Cooperative is an essential requirement to develop cooperatives in the direction of voluntariness, equality and mutual assistance.

The goal is that by July 1, 100% of cooperatives must complete the conversion to the new organizational and operational model. However, up to this point, 35% of agricultural cooperatives have not yet completed the conversion.

Head of the National Assembly Standing Committee's monitoring delegation, Chairman of the Economic Committee Nguyen Van Giau, said that in the remaining nearly 1 month, no matter how urgent and intense, it is still impossible to complete the set target. With the lessons learned in the process of converting cooperatives from the old type to the new type, localities with cooperatives that have not yet converted need to step up propaganda so that farmers who are operating individually and have to face fierce competition from services to outputs of current production clearly understand and correctly perceive the role of cooperatives.

It is a lever to promote sustainable agriculture, truly bring economic efficiency to them, and protect their rights when participating in the agricultural product value chain.

According to daibieunhandan