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FINAL REPORT. ‘‘INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF COOPERATIVES (COOP) IN NORTH VIETNAM”. Hanoi,15/10/2010. PROJECT OVERVIEW. Donors: EU, AFD Implementer: GRET Duration: 2007 – 2010 Key Partner: DC – MPI
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FINAL REPORT ‘‘INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF COOPERATIVES (COOP) IN NORTH VIETNAM” Hanoi,15/10/2010
PROJECT OVERVIEW • Donors: EU, AFD • Implementer: GRET • Duration: 2007 – 2010 • Key Partner: DC – MPI • Locations: Vinh Phuc, Phu Tho & Ninh Binh, (3 districts/province – focus on poor ones) • Local Partners: Provincial People’s Committee, DPI, DARD, WU, FU, Coop Alliance – Leading agency, Advisory Coops • Target Beneficiaries: Local Coops, Coop groups • Other beneficiaries: Local authorities (District and commune levels)
KEY ACTIVITIES AND OUTCOMES I. Support perfecting the legal frame and central-level policies II. Support institutions at local level
Support perfecting the legal frame and central-level policies A. Background B. Perfecting a legal frame C. Intervention: legal-related activities
A. BackgroundMitigate legal framework ties A Coop is popularly understood as: + either an assistant of local authorities, this understanding results from negative effects of the old-type Coop. (An agricultural Coop acting as a Cooperation of the whole commune with above 1.000 members) + or an enterprise managed by an individual whose capital contribution occupies the majority of the enterprise’s capital while its members are employees who have no voice and right of real decision making. A definition by ILO and ICA: • A Coop 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.
Constraints of Coop Management System • A cumbersome management structure (MPI assists the Government to solidate Coop management activities on nationwide while other Ministries manage Coops based on the businesses which they are responsible for; the Coop alliance acts as the representative and protect rights and obligations for Coops) • Not consistence in understanding the nature of a Coop
Training Policies offered to poor-managed Coops • Budget lines for trainings allocated in a cumbersome procedures through Coop alliances of provinces; • Regulations on budgets for trainings much lower than the market level, eg. cost for senior professors only ranges from150.000 dong to 200.000 dong/section • Trainings: high quantity but low quality (lack of appropriate approaches, good contents, etc.) • Low effectiveness in using State budgets
B. Perfecting a legal frame Promote dissemination activities on international regulations, laws and legal documents regarding Coop • Organize 19 Seminars to introduce Coop law and international lessons to 776 staff and local population • Hold 9 trainings at province/district levels for 390 staff and local population • Compile 3 legal handbooks regarding following areas: Coop Establishment Process, Organization and Operations; Support policies • Help Department of Coop – MPI publish books on new-type Coops
Amendment on Coop Law issued 2003 to strengthen the legal framework Facilitating Coops acting as an independent economic entity and easily accessing global markets => Support law reform • 2 surveys organized in 8 provinces in Mekong delta and 5 Northwest provinces with participation of 17 officials of Department of Coop and Government bodies • 2 seminars at national level to introduce and discuss Coop law Draft with attendance of 134 delegates from central bodies and provinces/cities • 7 normative legal foundations regarding: Coop Development, Role of local authorities, training and land policies, credit, tax and support – advisory Coop.
Amendment on Coop Law issued 2003 to strengthen the legal framework • Access international values and standards => Policy researches, study trips, seminars • Translate Coop laws/acts of other countries • Synthesize and compare different Coop models of Vietnam, France, Canada, Philipin and Thailand • Organize 3 study trips to learn international lessons from Korea, Singapore and Indonesia for 15 officials of Department of Coop – MPI and Government bodies.
C. Interventions: legal-related activities • Project facilitated discussions at central level about amendment on the legal framework regarding Coop sector • Project helped strengthen legal recognition of local population and authorities on Coop Law 2003 • Better understanding of legal regulations on Coop helps Coop members more willingness and self-confident in cooperation approaches • Registration procedures of Coops and Coop groups have been easily settled thank to the fact that local authorities understand the law better
II. Building & supporting institutional systems at local level A. Coordination Mechanism among agencies managing Coop sector A1. Context A2. Establishment of a Coordination Committee A3. Impacts of Support mechanism: Coordination Committee B. Credit support policy B1. Context B2. Creation of Turnover Funds B3. Impacts of Support mechanism: Turnover Funds C. Capacity buiding for Coops/Coop Groups C1. Context C2. Capacity building: Trainings – Education C3. Impacts of Trainings – Education: Raising awareness D. Support – Advisory mechanisms D1. Context D2. Improving Support – Advisory mechanisms D3. Impacts of Support - Advisory mechanisms
Building institutional systems at provincial level Finance Mechanism Revolving fund Coops/Coop Groups Cooperation Mechanism Provincial Coordination Committee – Multi-actors Training Mechanism Provincial Level Local level (Coops/Coop Groups) Support – Advisory Mechanism Local Advisory organizations Consultants Coops/Coop Groups Support Mechanism Map at Provincial level
A. Coordination Mechanism among agencies managing Coop sectorA1. Context: Existing constraints • Inconsistence in regulations on leading State agencies responsible for Cooperative management: this function is assigned to different agencies from DPI, DARD to Provincial Coop Alliances – not a body to perform State management on Cooperatives) • Lack of an effective coordination mechanism among relevant agencies • Authorities (People’s Committee) fails to perform some functions as stipulated by the law
A2. Establishment of a Coordination Committee at provincial level • Coordination Committee with presence of members from People’s Committee, DPI, DARD, Woman Union, Farmer Union and Cooperative Alliances, established by the Project and its activities : • Organize trainings on building capacity and raising awareness of Cooperative Law for 409 provincial officers - Hold workshops to share experience in cooperative development in Thai Nguyen with the attendance of 50 provincial officers and cooperative representatives - Set up websites and database as a reference for Cooperative alliances (information-rich portals, policies, and documents ragarding cooperative sector as well as findings and lessons learnt from the project) - Assist Cooperative alliance to publish Collective – economy articles
A3. Impacts of Support mechanism: Coordination Committee • Foster the existing relationship among member agencies of the Coordination Committee • Mobilize involvement/participation of all stakeholders to further improve the cooperative sector
A3. Impacts of Support mechanism: Coordination Committee • Local authorities (People’s Committees at all level) pay more attention to the development of cooperative sector: • Approve principles of the revolving fund and improve fund deployment approaches: contribute their capital to Funds founded by the project • Highly appreciate the role of Cooperative Alliances and better recognize great benefits from providing assistance and consultancy services to the development of Coops • Create favourable conditions for newly-established Coops • Offer a number of new preferential policies to Coops established by the project (in Yen Khanh - Ninh Binh), eg. Mushroom growing Cooperative in Yen Khanh-Ninh Binh • Peopel’s Committee of Ninh Binh asked Cooperative Alliance to design a strategy to promote the development of Coops • Woman Union of Vinh Phuc gets involved in creating new Coops
B. Credit support policy B1. Context: Barriers against Coops to access credits • Coops hardly get bank loans due to: - lack of collaterals - poor capacity of designing project proposals and business strategies • Limited local funds to aid Coops: + Ninh Binh: no Funds for Coops + Phu Tho: a Fund of 2 billion dong • No preferential credits for Cooperative Groups
B2. Creation of Turnover Funds (1/3) • A turnover fund/province was established with transparent statutes and user manuals. • Charter capital of turnover Funds: • Every province has its own Fund Management Council comprising of representatives of Coop Alliance and Advisory Coops, 2 members of Coordination Board => Advisory Coops – a new model in Vietnam and its membership includes officials from State agencies at provincial level and other civil society organizations
B2. Creation of Turnover Funds (2/3) • Target groups: Coops and Coop Groups • Loan duration: 1-2 years • Interest rate: 0,7%/month • Loan amount: 25 - 70 million/project • Flexible collaterals • Simple procedures
B2. Creation of Turnover Funds (2/3) • 4 – 5 Calls for proposals per province • Trainings on skills of project design for 305 officers from Coop Alliances and local Coops/Coop groups • Consulancy and Support of Procinvial Coop Alliances, and Advisory Coops offered to Coops/Coop Groups to submit their project proposal • Communications: leaflets, posters, TV & radio reports • “Mico-Credit deployment handbook“ • 80 Coops/Coop Groups accessed a loan of 4,2 bil
B3. Impacts of Support mechanism: Turnover Funds • Provincial Coop Alliances seize Fund procedures and management • Provincial Partners (People’s Committee, Coop Alliance) raise their great concern and contribute their capital to Funds • 80 Coop Groups/Coops have been facilitated to access loans at low interest rate • Some new products (mushroom, chicken, pig, etc.) have been developed both in size and quality. • Some services (waste and environmental hygiene fee) serving social welfare have been emerged • New equipments and supplies have been purchased (feed, veterinary medicines, etc.) • A number of new jobs have been generated.
C. Capacity buiding for Coops/Coop Groups C1. Context: Capacity and awareness limitation among Coop officers • By the end of 2007, nation-wide there are : + 1.655/5.542 untrained management heads (accounting for 30%) + 4.348/13.938 untrained cooperative directors (accounting for 31.2%) • In 2009, the percentage of managerial officers classified based on education: + Collega and Post-graduate: 6,87% + Vocaltional Training, Technical workers and Unskilled labor: 60% • False awareness of residental people about Coop, which is still affected by the obsolete model • Lack of understanding about Coope and Coop Groups • The cooperation demands do exist among people but there is no organization to group them up
C2. Capacity Building : Trainings and Education • 5 surveys on the demands for training among professional bodies and cooperative members • Capacity building trainings for 469 Coop and Coop Groups from 3 provinces within project scope, as many as 2987 people received training • Applying participatory approaches • Varied topics: Laws, Accounting, Marketing, Business planning, IT, management and leadership skills, etc. • 20 competent trainers have been successfully trained • Field trips and study tours organized
Publications – Documents • Training documents (Accoungting, TOT, Leaderships & Management skills, etc.) • 3 Legal Handbooks • 3 websites to introduce activities and operations of Coops in 3 project provinces
C3. Impacts of Trainings – Education: Rasing awareness (1/2) • Awareness over the importance of understanding laws, accounting, management and market research & development • Law • Accounting principles • Institution/Organization Analysis • Adaption to markets (catching new market demands and show satisfying capacity to the markets)
C3. Impacts of Trainings – Education (2/2) • Strengthen competency of members • Build and promote brands • Seek for and select potential customers • Replace obsolete trading methods to innovative ones • Enhance strengths and make good weaknesses • Apply objective-oriented business strategies • Refer to cooperative members’ ideas for financial management
D. Support – Advisory mechanisms D1. Context: Lack of a Support – Advisory mechanism • Increasingly demands for consultancy services among local people • Limitted capacity of providing consultancy servies of Coop Alliances • Lack of State budget lines for establishment of new Coops • Only State and local budget lines offered to trainings and education to Coop officers
D2. Improving Support – Advisory mechanisms (1/3) • Consolidate new advisory Coops Enhance competence of existing Coops such as HaDevA, Corudes, Red River Advisory Centre + Nho Quan Farm joint stock Coop + Consultant Groups in Yen Khanh – Ninh Binh through Trainings, Seminars, and Direct consultancy services provided by project experts Engage involvement of civil society organziations in Coop sector:play key roles in Fund management, provide consultancy, participate in field trips and establishment of Nerad network Products: Handbook “A guide on building and developing cooperative economy”
D2. Improving Support – Advisory mechanisms (2/3) 2. Provide consultancy in establishment of new-type Coops/Coop Groups - Investigate demands among local people - Assist 10 newly-established Coops and 25 Coop Groups - Help set up Coops for raising poultry in Tam Duong – Vinh Phuc - Establish a network of Coops for jointly growing mushroom in Yen Khanh – Ninh Binh, comprising of 11 Coop Groups
D2. Improving Support – Advisory mechanisms (3/3) 3. Post-set up assistance • Direct and regular support provided by Advisory Coops: create plans, promote brands, etc. • Technical trainings and capacity building to improve productivity of Coops/Coop Groups (7 technical trainings) • Seminars with attendance of multi-actors: local authorities, Coops/Coop Groups and entrepreneurs
D3. Impacts of Support - Advisory mechanisms (1/2) • Positive changes Advisory Coops made Better ability of providing consultancy service of Advisory Coops, Nho Quan Coop and Consultant group in Yen Khanh – Ninh Binh • A wider range of fields (law, IT, Management, business strategy making, project design skills, etc.) • Better adaption to institutional networks • Better recognition from different stakeholders • 4 consultancy contracts and 11 training contracts with authorities at district/commune levels • New initiatives proposed by consultants in Ninh Binh for a new Advisory Organization
D3. Impacts of Support - Advisory mechanisms (2/2) • Achievements Coops obtained: - New Coops’ operations in accordance with the nature of a Coop - & respecting for cooperation principles • Better attention paid to Coop members (providing more services)