Cooperative societies have called on the federal government to establish a Cooperative Development Commission (CDC), to strengthen regulation, improve governance and address longstanding challenges affecting the country’s cooperative movement.
The call was made during activities marking the 2026 International Day of Cooperatives held in Abuja.
General manager of the Central Bank of Nigeria Staff Multipurpose Cooperative Society, Mr. Pius Obianyor, said the existing regulatory framework had become inadequate and required a dedicated institution to oversee cooperative activities nationwide.
According to him, the proposed commission, similar to the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), would improve coordination, regulation and information dissemination across the sector.
“What we are doing currently is not working. We need a commission that will handle cooperative issues,” Obianyor said.
He also advocated a comprehensive review of the Cooperative Act to strengthen accountability, improve dispute resolution and discourage prolonged litigation after internal conflict resolution mechanisms had been exhausted.
According to him, court cases often disrupt cooperative operations and undermine the confidence of members.
Obianyor further called for stricter sanctions against officials who mismanage cooperative funds.
“People should be held accountable and prosecuted where cooperative funds are mismanaged,” he said.
Also speaking, secretary of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) Staff Multipurpose Cooperative Society, Mr. Monday Ameh, urged the government to simplify registration procedures, saying cumbersome processes continued to discourage the formation and growth of cooperative societies.
Mrs. Mujidat Abdulrahman of Milestone Cooperative Society also called on the Federal Department of Cooperatives to engage more actively with community-based cooperative societies to deepen financial inclusion across the country.
Earlier, president of the Abuja Cooperative Federation, Mr. Emmanuel Atama, said the theme of this year’s celebration: “Cooperatives for a Peaceful World,” highlighted the role of cooperative enterprises in promoting inclusion, social justice and economic empowerment.
He said cooperatives remained critical to grassroots development, domestic production and support for vulnerable groups while also contributing to sustainable development.
Atama commended the federal government for ongoing efforts to address challenges within the cooperative movement and specifically praised the supervising minister of state for agriculture and food security, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, for initiatives aimed at repositioning the sector.
He also urged Nigeria to adopt Kenya’s cooperative regulatory model to strengthen governance, transparency and oversight.
The celebration featured a road walk and quiz competition involving cooperative executives from across the Federal Capital Territory.
