Aligning Cooperative Support Services: A Case Study of Cooperative Thrift

The core research question for this study is ‘which service or services of the CTCS is attractive to its members and likely to influence business growth? This calls for an examination of the current structure and activities of the societies; the socio- economic characteristics of current clientele; and the characteristics of the business which they own. [...] This study investigated the organization and activities of the cooperatives; profiled the range of services offered and examined which of the services supports the profitability and growth of small businesses in the informal sector. [...] The leadership of the cooperative organizations were interviewed in order to obtain information on the establishment and purpose of the society; the services rendered and management practices of the organization. [...] The leaders however indicated that they did not monitor the use of such loans after it had been disbursed (55 %); the reasons given for it included inefficiency on the part of the loan recovery committee, lack of time, secrecy on the part of members and the diversion of funds. [...] The low participation of youths may be attributed to the structure and focus of the organizations; youths’ poor perception and unwillingness to join, and poor visibility of the cooperatives.