The Odua Cooperative Conglomerate is seeking access to international grants and donor funding to rejuvenate the cooperative movement and boost economic development across South-West Nigeria.
Speaking at a special stakeholders' meeting held at the Cooperative Building in Dugbe, Ibadan, the President of the conglomerate, Chief Felix Ajibode, said the engagement was prompted by insights gained from the recent World Meets in Giessen Conference hosted by IHK Global in Friberg, Germany, which had representatives from over 150 countries including Nigeria, India, China, and Brazil.
Ajibode said the meeting was convened to explore how the region's cooperative societies could tap into global opportunities and attract much-needed financial support to scale up their activities.
“The feedback from our delegates who attended the conference underscores the importance of repositioning the cooperative sector. This stakeholders’ gathering is to collectively deliberate on how we can benefit from the international opportunities presented at the conference,” he said.
He lamented the neglect of the cooperative movement by successive governments since the era of Premier Obafemi Awolowo, who supported the movement with grants and subventions during the pre-independence and early post-independence period.
“It saddens me that since the military era till now, no government in the South-West has offered financial support in the form of grants or subventions to cooperatives under the state federations,” Ajibode said.
“Given this vacuum and the prospects presented at the THK Conference, we must now seek alternative avenues such as international grants, donor funds, and developmental loans to reposition the movement in the region.”
To this end, a committee was inaugurated during the meeting to design an action plan and roadmap for accessing funding and revitalising the South-West Cooperative Conglomerate. The committee is expected to submit its report within 30 days.
Oyo State Commissioner for Investment, Trade, Cooperatives and Industry, Adebisi Adeniyi—represented by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Olajide Okesade—assured participants of Governor Seyi Makinde’s readiness to support the cooperative sector’s growth agenda.
Similarly, the Ogun State Commissioner for Community Development and Cooperative, Alhaji Ademola Balogun, represented by the Director of Cooperative Services, Samuel Mustapha, recalled the role cooperatives played in the old Western Region’s economic success under Awolowo.
“Cooperatives were pivotal to enhancing agricultural productivity, generating employment, and establishing a cooperative bank,” Mustapha noted.
Also speaking, the Osun State Commissioner for Cooperative and Empowerment, Chief Bayo Ogungbangbe, said Governor Ademola Adeleke would support any initiative that promotes the sustainability and development of the cooperative sector.
The event was attended by cooperative federation presidents and directors from Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ekiti, and Ondo states.
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