Role Of Women Cooperative Society In Community Building

1.0 INTRODUCTION
The concept cooperative development is a package of development programs, it is defined as the process of propagating cooperative movement as an organization framework through veritable instruments for the utilization and sensitization of man.
This situation optimizes the integrated enterprises approach to the people living in both urban and mainly in rural communities. Severally, attempts to have made to achieve initiated result of the changes in the economic and social system at the early century recorded as the period of industrial revolution. As such, there was a changes from domestic to factory system leading to untold attendant evils of mans humanity to man.
There have been failures thwarting the concerted efforts to promote cooperative movement in the world. The evidence could be provided with the chief protagonists, ROBERT OWEN who experienced it between 1825 and 1887. Through other cooperative movement which borrowed their experiences from twenties movement sprang up and witnessed successful operation at a slow pace there after.

1.1 GENERAL OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY
Women play vital roles in the socio economic and political development of a particular country. Such role therefore, contribute to the development of rural areas and help in improving the standard of living of the communities. Indeed in same cases, through the activities of some women cooperatives. Infrastructural facilities and social amenities are provided in the community. These women are indispensable in the building (development) process of a country, particularly the rural areas.
Notably, the roles played by women cooperatives in the rural communities-building vary from one society to another. However, these roles remain basically the same because the nature of women is the same everywhere. The women in every culture are endowed with such qualities and responsibilities that necessitate the roles which they perform. The roles which they play perform start with the roles which they play in their various families. Each family is the smallest unit of the entire society. It is in the family that the women begin to play certain roles before they perform some other roles in the wider society. Infact, such roles which they will effectively play roles assigned to them outside their families.
In the Nigerian society today, it is impossible to discuss such roles like food production handling, processing and preparation without making reference to the Nigeria women. As a mater of fact, they are the main group involved in the performance of these roles. It is an established fact that the women in Nigeria and African as a whole are not only the main producers of food, but also engage in other income generating activities. It has been established that women working in some farms produce about 90% of the food consumed locally. Not only that, women are responsible for preparing the food and nutrition of the family. Ibraham, 1990 cited in Onuegbu (2001:39). The contribution of women in the agricultural sub sector of the Nigeria economy cannot be over looked, in almost all the food producing areas in the country. The work is done through manual labour. The women in these areas provide most of the labour required. In addition to extensive agriculture, women are involved in home gardening. This provides fresh fruits and leafy vegetables for the family, thus supplying the necessary vitamins and mineral element required for the body functions.
According to Onuegbu (2001:39) in a publication highlighting the achievement of the “Better life” programme in Imo State, it was noted that women in Imo State on the whole involve themselves in farming activities extensively. In the report, it was stated that the women have been the source of families having cassava, which is a staple food. In the area, they are usually involved in the cultivation weeding of farms, harvesting the mature crops, processing and the marketing of the products. Therefore, without the activities of the women, cassava production will be near impossible. This is true for, almost all the food items produced in Nigerian.
While emphasizing on the role of the women in the processing of agricultural products mainly in the areas of extracting palm oil, it was revealed that, apart from the actual harvesting of the palm fruits, the other activities are done by women. These include removing the nuts from the bunches, boiling, pounding, separating kernels from fiber, soaking and washing of fiber in water, extracting the oil from water and cooking the oil.
The involvement of women in agriculture is both from domestic and commercial purposes. This brings to light their role in the home as co-bread winners with their husbands. The women engage in several ventures in order to improve the family income and standard of living thus the work outside the home and in most cases, become self employed. The aim is to provide more money so that the family can now afford a more nutritious diet. Also it has been recognized that 50% of the married women work outside their homes, making their much needed contributions to the implies is one loaded with a great responsibility, she is directly involved in house; keeping home management, cooking and serving of meals.
Home management is the process of using of family’s resource to meet the family needs and goals. It require metal work had the physical power of the family member “this definition of very relevant in the areas of making purchases especially of food items planning of family menu as well preparing of require metal and physical power to make sure that the family’s resource are optimistically utilized. The women even in the local communities require apply their in every day life to ensure that their families are well feed. A typical day for a normal house wife in the society always involved cleaning and tidying up the environment, making purchases of necessary food items preparing mails serving their husband ad order children with meals and feeding the younger one’s.
At this junction, it has to be pointed out, that the successively administration in Nigeria have made several effort in the building of a community in the country. Such effort include the introduction of the various agricultural development programmes like Operation Feed the Nation (OFN) green revolution (GR) operation feed to land (OFL) river basin development authorities (RBDA) etc. The reason for this, to fail is because there was no discipline among some top Nigeria government ensuring. Most women in the country particularly the rural community women have to execute some projects or assisted their male counter part in doing so. Some projects executed by women include the construction of community schools, hospitals, roads, market stalls, execution of rural water and electrification schemes and so on. All these are indices of development. Therefore, one can without hesitate to state that women are highly indispensable in the socio economic development of a country, particularly, the community.

1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEMS
Since independence the successive administration in Nigeria have formulated and implemented difference development programmes for the purpose of developing the communities within the country. But unfortunately in the rural setting where such efforts had been made with regard to developing them, most of the communities such as good roads, pipe borne water, electricity, hospitals, schools, etc. Those of them that has some of these amenities do not adequately maintained them. The socio-economic problems of the community-population worsen everyday. As a matter of fact the level of poverty, low standard of living and ever increasing unemployment in the local setting have been assuming dangerous dimensions. The generation of local government administration is to make room for a quick grass root development. Consequently, there has been unpleasant phenomena of rural urban-migration. Most Nigerians are more interested in residing within the rural areas. Their major interest is to move to the urban centres where the various infrastructural facilities exist.
Thus, one wonders if the rural areas are really part of Nigeria. In addition to the foregoing, the programmes initiated by some women in Nigeria with the major aim of helping in the development of the communities ended up not producing the desired results. Also, some of the women get married so early aid equally lack good education, thus, they do not contribute meaningful in the development of the rural areas of the country and even the nation’s economy as a whole.
Therefore, the research decided to undertake the study in order to find out the reasons for the ugly state of affairs in the rural areas of Nigerians.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The objectives of the study are broad and specific. The broad objectives of the research are to study the effects of economic activities of the rural women on rural communities. The specific objectives of the study includes:
1. To study the level of contributions of women cooperatives towards the building of communities in Nigeria
2. To study the nature of economic activities carried out in the areas of study
3. To find out the source and volume of funds used by the rural women in the execution of development oriented projects in the community
4. To study the effects of the economic activities of the rural women
5. Identify the problems facing the rural women on their development efforts
6. To make policies and recommendations, based on the findings of the study.

1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The topic of this project is on the role of women cooperative in community building (A case study of Nnebukwu women co-operative society in Oguta local government area Imo State).
As the case study entitles I focused my attention on role of women co-operative in community building with interest that operates within it.
1. Could women render any services by organization, and belonging to marketing cooperative societies to sell their product?
2. A traditional organization in the village be used promoting co-operative in community building
3. Have women creates any impact on the development area? That is community building
4. Would registered cooperative movement given women ruralists provision to get access of the credit facilities of the government.

1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
For the purpose of the study the following research questions could be narrow down as follows by the researcher.
1. To what extent have Nigerian women contribute in the development of the community in Nigeria?
2. Why are the women interested in the building of the community?
3. Why is it that the effort of women towards the building of the community have not been producing reasonable results?
4. What is the level of efforts by the Nigerian government towards the development of the community?
5. What are the reasons for lack of real development in the community?

1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The significance of the study include that, it will help renders to understand the extent by the rural communities in Nigeria. It will give an insight into why the real development has been eluding the rural communities in Nigeria.
Through the study, readers will know the problems of the rural communities in Nigerian. The study will also help Nigerian to know the level of efforts, which the successive Nigerian governments have made towards the development of rural communities.
It will equally make readers to realize how the efforts of women in the development of the communities have produced meaningful results. With the study, the solution of the problems of the rural communities in Nigerian can be formed and the government will make a policy that will help to solve the problems.

1.7 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
The researcher encountered certain problems while carrying out the research. One of such problems was that, she did not have enough money with which to carryout the numerous tasks involved in a research of this nature. Also, there was lack of cooperation on the part of some staff or some of the women cooperative societies studied.
In addition to the above, some of the respondents who were interviewed successfully concluded the research expectations.

1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS
Rural/Community Building: This is the process which seek to ensure an overall improvement in the standard of living of the rural dwellers, infrastructural facilities/social amenities. These are those things which help to improve the people’s standard living.
Rural-Urban Migration: This is a statement which is subject to rectification.
To fasters the understanding on the topic “Role of women co-operative in community building” the following terms needs to be coherently and precisely.
a. ROLE: The Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary of current English A.S Honb fourth Edition says it is a meaning of function that can be played by a person. The importance of some thing/somebody.
Women according to the Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary, it means an adult female human being, it goes further to say that is a female workers or women under the authorities of somebody else. In the biblical expression women is seen as the person her husband put confidence in and he will never be poor, that is as long as she lives and does him good without harming him. She keeps herself busy making wool and wear cloth.
b. CO-OPERATIVE: This is a generic term meaning more than two or more work together with commonness. It is seen as an old concepts in the sense that individuals live and share there problems. These like labour exchange “Isusu” among others. Cooperative organization can be defined as group of persons who have pooled themselves and their resources of self help, mutual, equitable and democratic basis to form a business enterprises which seek members by directly providing them with goods and services in their double capacity as either owners/ customers or women (workers of the co-operative enterprises Umabal and Mgbada 1997:2114). According to J.N.P cooperative society is a voluntary organization of free and independent persons or the betterment of their economic conditions.
c. DEVELOPMENT: According to advance learners dictionary. It means the process/action to developer being developed. It stress that development implies a new stage or event, a new product or invention.
(Gerler 1985:76) said that development has to do with growth progress and advancement towards challenges like acceleration of economic growth rates eradicating absolute poverty, reducing inequality and creating more employment and productive opportunities before development could be achieved.