Cooperative Movement
1952
The issuance of the first legislation under number (39) of 1952, under which the Cooperative Construction Department was established at the Ministry of Construction as a formal entity, in addition to the Central Cooperative Union and the establishment of the first cooperative society for saving and agricultural credit (South Jordan Valley).
1968
The issuance of Law No. (55) of 1968, under which the Jordanian Cooperative Corporation was established as a private organization including (Central Cooperative Union, Account Control Union, the Cooperative Institute, and the establishment of the Cooperative Bank).
1968–1997
Jordanian Cooperative Corporation continued during this period. The Cooperative Bank provided loans, trading services, and production requirements. Fattening stations, mechanism stations, and pastoral reserves were established, along with many agricultural cooperative societies, bringing real development.
1997
The issuance of the Cooperation Law No. (18) of 1997, under which the Jordanian Cooperative Corporation was established as the legal successor of the corporation, entrusted with tasks such as registration of cooperative societies, counseling and guidance, technical support, training, dissemination of culture, preparing draft legislation, facilitating communication with donors, and representing the cooperative sector before other entities.
Development Role of Cooperative Societies in Jordan
The cooperative work in Jordan plays a prominent economic and social role to achieve the development goals due to its distinctive role in:
1
Encouraging the private sector to invest in and market goods and services.
2
Facing market monopolies and improving competition opportunities.
3
Providing thousands of employment opportunities in needy areas.
4
Contributing to solving problems in sensitive sectors such as consumer, housing, and agricultural cooperatives.
5
Educating and promoting a participatory approach in the community.
6
Playing a complementary role to government efforts in providing care and development programs.
Future Trends
The Corporation achieved a lot with limited resources, but it still needs support. Key future trends include:
Disseminating cooperative thinking in existing communities and cooperatives through educational sessions.
Setting up a clear five-year strategy for the cooperative sector.
Registering cooperative societies concerned with marketing.
Launching income-generating projects to create employment opportunities.
Creating parallel markets for cooperative products.
Providing human resources to the Corporation.
Diversifying cooperative activities and granting appropriate funding.
Writing off inherited Corporation debts.
Applying state-of-the-art technologies and training in cooperative work.