BONTOC, Mountain Province (PIA) – – Cooperatives continue to thrive in the province with at least 50 active coops.
Based on the data of the Provincial Cooperatives Office here, the municipality of Bontoc has the highest number of eleven (11) cooperatives followed by the municipalities of Bauko and Sagada with ten (10) cooperatives each. The municipalities of Paracelis have five cooperatives; Barlig – 4; Tadian – 3; Besao, Natonin and Sabangan has two cooperatives each; and Sadanga has one.
Of the total active cooperatives, there are six that are classified under large cooperatives with a total assets of P50 million-P100M, seven are classified as medium cooperatives with assets ranging from P15M – P50M, while 11 are small cooperatives or with total assets of P3M – P15M.
The rest are classified as micro cooperatives having assets of P3M and below.
Estrella Africano of the Provincial Cooperatives Office shared that coops have s improved the standard and quality of life of members. Since members have their fixed deposits in the cooperatives, they can easily access loans with minimal annual interest instead of borrowing money from private individuals with high interest.
Some cooperatives also offer loan in terms of appliances, and some even offer housing loans. And when a member dies, a lump sum death aid is also given to immediate family members which is of great help for the bereaved family.
Because of the savings deposit program of the cooperatives, members learned how to save, Africano added. **Juliet B. Saley
