Cooperative Principles
1. Open and Voluntary Membership
2. Democratic Control
3. Limited Interest on Capital
4. Patronage Refund
5. Continuous Education and Training
6. Cooperation Among Cooperatives

A Cooperative is

• Service Oriented

• People Oriented

• Community Oriented

• Business Enterprise

• Managed, owned and patronized by members

• Developed thru self-help and mutual help

• Developed from bottom to top

• Enhanced thru multi-sectoral approach

• Answers the felt need of Members

Types of Cooperative
1. Credit Cooperative
2. Consumers Cooperative
3. Producers Cooperative
4. Marketing Cooperative
5. Service Cooperative
6. Multi-purpose Cooperative

Cooperative Practices
1. Capital Formation
2. Cash Trading
3. Selling at Market Price
4. Constant Expansion
5. Quality Standardized Goods
6. Cooperative Wholesale and Interlending
7. Minimize Expenditures
8. Frequent Audit
9. Officers' Meeting and General Assembly

Internal Sources

A. Share capital
1. Initial Subscription
2. Continuous Capital Build-up
B. Revolving Capital
C. Capital Reserve
D. Deposits of Members
E. Borrowings
F. Cooperative Guarantee Fund
G. Fees, Fines
H. Subsidies, Grants and Donations

External Sources
A. Loans
B. Subsidies, Grants and Donations
C. Other Sources of funds as maybe authorized

Law:
1. Advances from Customers
2. Fund - Raising Activities
 

Cooperative Organizational Structure

(Click Image to Enlarge)

Organization and Management Structure of Cooperative

A. Membership
1. Member
2. Kinds of  Membership
   a. Regular
   b. Associate
3. Application
4. Liability
5. Termination of Membership
   a. Automatic
   b. Voluntary
   c. Involuntary
B. General Assembly
1. Meetings
2. Voting system
3. Board of Directors
   a. Composition
   b. Powers
   c. Qualifications
   d. Meeting of Board
   e. Vacancy in the Board
4. Officers of the Cooperative
5. Committees of the Cooperative

Powers, Duties and Responsibilities of Members
1. Adopt and/or amend the Constitution By-Laws and Agreements.

2. Elect and Recall Directors Vote upon appropriations

3. Vote upon appropriations

4. Require the Directors and Officers to the run the business legally

5. Hold Directors and Officers liable for any damage to the members

6. Examine the Annual Reports

7. Dissolve or merge the Cooperative

8. Provide the necessary capital

9. Control the cooperative

10. Patronize the cooperative

11. Assume business risks

12. Pay operating costs

13. Keep informed

14. Maintain the cooperative
 

Causes of Failure of early Cooperatives in the Philippines
1. Lack of understanding of the nature and purpose of cooperatives.

2. Violations of basic cooperative principles and practices as well as sound business management.

3. Opportunism, dishonesty and incompetence of cooperative officials.

4. Politics and undue reliance on politics and politicians to solve problems of the cooperative.

5. Lack of capital. There is no understanding and determination to build-up a cooperative on the part of the member and inefficiency of the management in capital formation.

6. Competition and opposition of established business and vested interest.