Cooperative Societies and Managerial Competence among Small-Scale Businesses in Odukpani, Cross River State, Nigeria

Abstract

In this 21^st century, Nigeria still faces the big challenge of improving the socio-economic condition of its rural population. Low income and poverty is a perennial problem in Nigeria’s rural communities. This could be attributed to poor or deficient use of the human, natural, environmental and agricultural resources which are available to the rural sector. Primarily, it is the duty of the rural community dwellers themselves to make the best use of these resources which are available to them. This study investigates how cooperative societies can be a tool or strategy for developing managerial competence among small-scale businesses in rural communities of Cross River State using Odukpani as a case study. One hypothesis is tested for the purpose of the study using Analysis of Variance. Ex-post Facto approach is adopted as research design for this study. Ex-post facto is systematic empirical enquiry in which the scientist does not have direct control of the independent variables because they are inherently not manipulable. Sample size for the purpose of this study was one hundred forty (140). Twenty persons were selected from each of the seven (7) Wards/Villages which had cooperative societies. The sampling technique used for this research was simple random sampling. In this study, the researcher used questionnaire for data collection. The findings of the study showed that membership of cooperative societies does significantly influence development of managerial competence for business among rural communities of Odukpani. Based on the findings of the study, recommendations were made.