Members usually receive limited compensation, if any, on capital subscribed as a condition of membership. At least part of that capital is usually the common property of the co-operative.

Members contribute equitably to, and democratically control, the capital of their co-operative. In primary co-operatives members have equal voting rights (one member, one vote) and co-operatives at other levels are also organised in a democratic manner.ģrd Principle: Member Economic Participation Men and women serving as elected representatives are accountable to the membership.

The co-operative principles are guidelines by which co-operatives put their values into practice.ġst Principle: Voluntary and Open MembershipĬo-operatives are voluntary organisations, open to all persons able to use their services and willing to accept the responsibilities of membership, without gender, social, racial, political or religious discrimination.Ĭo-operatives are democratic organisations controlled by their members, who actively participate in setting their policies and making decisions. In the tradition of their founders, cooperative members believe in the ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others. The Cooperative PrinciplesĬooperatives are based on the values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity. However, co-operative activity spans to large number of sectors and activities including car-sharing child-care, health and social care, funeral, orchestras and philharmonics, schools, sports, tourism, utilities (electricity, water, gas, etc.), and transport (taxis, buses, etc). They exist in traditional economic sectors such as agriculture, fisheries, consumer and financial services, housing, and production (workers' co-operatives). The co-operative model of enterprise can be applied to any business activity.

Ranging from small-scale to multi-million dollar businesses across the globe, co-operatives employ more than 100 million women and men (20% more than multinational enterprises combined), and have more than 800 million individual members.Ĭooperatives were officially born in 1844 when theRochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers established the Rochdale Principles on which they ran their cooperative, when the basis for development and growth of the modern cooperative movement was established. BY-LAWS OF THE MULTI-PURPOSE COOPERATIVE (PDF) What is a Cooperative?Ī co-operative is an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise.

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