Title

Jordanian Multi-Purpose Agricultural Cooperatives As Instruments Of Development: A Case In Public Policy

Date of Award

1984

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Social Sciences

Advisor(s)

Dennis A. Rondinelli

Keywords

Public administration

Subject Categories

Agricultural and Resource Economics

Abstract

Two major issues were examined in this study. The first is the extent to which the members of cooperative societies control and manage the affairs of the cooperatives in Jordan. The second is the extent to which the Jordanian Cooperative Organization in general and the multi-purpose agricultural cooperatives in particular are able to contribute to agricultural development in Jordan.

Two hypotheses are examined. The first is that members participate effectively in the affairs of their societies if two factors are at work: if members identify with their cooperatives, and if they are satisfied with them. Participation is influenced by the following factors: members' education, socio-economic status, shares in the society's paid-up capital, and period of membership. These factors lead to differences in the degree of members' participation. The second hypothesis is that the Jordanian Cooperative Organization (JCO) and the multi-purpose agricultural cooperatives have been a successful instrument for economic development through two principal instruments: the first of these is the cheap credit which the JCO supplies to farmers, the cooperative acting as the necessary institutional mechanism for the provision of credit. The second is the provision of agricultural inputs, on favorable terms, which the JCO supplies through cooperatives.

The study indicates that there is a minimal participation in the affairs of the cooperative societies by their members. However, the resulting conclusion is that more active members can be described as young, better educated and with higher socio-economic status. They have been members for a longer period of time, identify themselves with the cooperative society to which they belong, and are both more satisfied with and have more shares in the capital of their cooperative.

The study also shows that the multi-purpose agricultural cooperatives cannot develop on their own without governmental assistance, which reflects the societies' failure to be effective tools for coordinating and mobilizing local resources, and consequently their contribution to improving farmers' living conditions is minimal.

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