Agricultural cooperatives can help commercialize agriculture and benefit Nepalese farmers. Cooperatives allow farmers to pool resources for mutual benefit. They provide services like marketing produce to get fair prices. This empowers farmers and boosts the economy. However, past cooperative initiatives in Nepal have faced challenges like lack of government support, clear planning, technology, and policies. For cooperatives to effectively commercialize agriculture, these obstacles must be addressed. Involving cooperatives could significantly benefit Nepal's agriculture-dependent economy if done systematically and consistently.

1. COOPERATIVES in agricultural commercialization to
SUFFICE NEPALESE FARMERS
KUNJIKA PRASAI
KTM, FEB.17, 11
In layman’s term,
cooperative means
concerted, joint,
combined or united
activity of two or
more. In business
terms, a cooperative -
synonymously
known as a micro
credit organization,
mutual or simply a
co-op - is a business
enterprise that is
voluntarily owned
and run by a group of
individuals for their
mutual benefit.
Cooperatives work
on marginal profit for the benefit of their members. These days, you have cooperatives
tasked with the delivery of a public utility (like electricity, water), education, financial
services, or even those dealing with and engaging in food retailing, insurance, funeral
services, bulk purchases and organized productions, and travel industry. A certain type
of cooperative also indulges in commodity trading. Before you go wondering about what
commodity trading is, let me clear out that commodity trading is an investing strategy
that involves the buying and selling of those goods classified as commodities. Usually,
when people choose to invest in commodities, they highly tend to think in terms of items
that are resources and that may be purchased for a wide range of uses. For a clearer
understanding, take wheat as an example. You may have often purchased and/or
consumed wheat biscuits or wheat flour. So wheat is a base ingredient which can be used
to produce other finer products. Linking this phenomenon of commodity trading with
agricultural commercialization, and also keeping in mind to adopt welfare objectives
different from those of profit maximizing competitors, has led to the emergence of
agricultural cooperative.

2. Agricultural Cooperative
Agricultural cooperatives are those cooperatives where farmers gather their resources for
mutual benefit. They are also referred to as farmers’ cooperatives. Broadly, you have two
types of farmers’ cooperatives – agricultural service cooperatives and agricultural production
cooperatives. The first one provides various services to individual farming members, while
the latter pools production resources such as land or machinery for members to farm
jointly.
Merits of farmer cooperatives
If cooperatives are to engage in agricultural commercialization, it could prove to be really
advantageous for Nepalese farmers, and the country as a whole. I can give you a list of
the good it could bring to our economy as follows:
 Farmers’ cooperatives are more locally oriented than are large companies.
 Farmers can get better and fair price for their produce, there by increasing their
quality of life.
 Farmers can be empowered and their competitiveness can be increased globally
 Economic growth can be stimulated.
 Agricultural production can be increased.
 You can also undertake future trading in commodities of which the cooperatives
are having the stock, so that if the market goes unfavorable, physical delivery can be
arranged.
 Since physical delivery can be promptly arranged, it can reduce price risks and
market risks.
 In essence, you also have the opportunity to experience stabilized prices of
agricultural commodities.
Overall, farmers’ cooperatives can preserve interest of producers and add value to
agricultural commodities. It can enhance food sufficiency and agricultural sustainability,
side by side promoting Nepal’s socio economic development.
Past Initiatives
It’s not that past initiatives have not been made. But past movement, however, have not
brought about much impact on agricultural commercialization, socio-economic
transformation of the nation and self-sufficiency of farmers. What appear to be the major
factors responsible for the failure of the cooperative movement in Nepal include:
 Lack of full governmental support
 Lack of clear mission and vision
 Lack of appropriate planning, implementation and evaluation
 Lack of research

3.  Lack of technology/agro-machines
 Lack of sound policies, programs, rules and regulations
 Lack of an efficient communication system
 Lack of sufficient credit availability
 Lack of sufficient resources
Need of Farmers’ Cooperative
Provided that these factors that may stand as an obstacle are taken into account,
involving cooperatives in agricultural commercialization in an organized and systematic
manner would highly benefit the economy. Besides, our economy is so very dependent
on agriculture from the inception to date. A consistent and continuous effort needs to be
undertaken to best exploit and utilize the window of opportunity at hand. A single blow
doesn’t break a door. It creaks at the first, cracks at the second and finally shivers at the
third. So what if the cooperative movement failed at the first try? Farmer’s cooperative is
vital to suffice the nation and its farmers the development they require. It is high time that
cooperatives in Nepal get involved in agricultural commercialization and set out once
again for a cooperative movement. Because when your sword breaks during a battle, you
draw your dagger.