The Agdao Multi-Purpose Cooperative in Davao City has recently joined the elite billionaires’ club of Region XI by surpassing the P1-billion mark in total assets, an authority on the cooperative movement revealed.
Antonio dela Cruz, newly-elected chairman of the Davao City Chamber of Commerce told the Habi and Kape press forum that the Agdao MPC has breached the P1-Billion mark in total assets to move into the top five of the 20 outstanding cooperatives in the region.
“I think its total assets has increased to P1.1Billion,” he said, adding that this was made possible with an increase in membership.
“Of course, part of its success is its board of directorso who have been very prudent in managing the affairs of the cooperative,” he said.
The acknowledged leader in the cooperative movement in the region is the Tagum Coop with a P4-billion asset and the first to make it to the billionaire’s club. It topped the list by being ranked first in four categories—paid-up capital, total assets, net surplus and volume of business.
Data furnished by the Cooperative Development Authority said the USPD Credit cooperative in Digos City and the Panabo Multi-purpose cooperative are were also poised to join the exclusive club sooner than expected.
According to the CDA, the common denominator among all the successful cooperatives has been their ability to provide and to sustain the required manpower in running the cooperative as well as in recruiting the required number of members.
Their successes also boiled down to sound fiscal management and good governance.
Tagum Coop’s story of how it started with 38 founding members in 1967 with only P80.00 combined share capital that turned into a P4 billion-asset cooperative in 2016 has been described as miracle of sorts.
It has now more than 120, 000 members in the Davao and Agusan provinces, including Davao City.
Coop vice chair Fe Adlawan said that coop’s metamorphosis into a catalyst and an agent for change has made it a favorite destination of various cooperatives.
She said it was no smooth sailing for the cooperative and that it had to undergo a cleansing period when it had to eject what she called “transactional leaders and officers.”
Eventually, with good governance and adherence to financial standards, the cooperative was able to recover for good.
Today, the cooperative boasts of a membership of 51,000 youth and student members with a total deposit of P75 million, something you don’t find elsewhere in the Philippines.
She said the coop’s secret lies in having visionary leaders, well-trained employees, and well-informed members.
Rounding up the top 20 cooperatives in Region X1 are: Tagum Cooperative, Panabo MPC, Nabunturan Integrated Cooperative, USPD Savings and Credit Cooperative, Agdao MPC, Santa Ana Multi-Purpose Cooperative, King Cooperative, BCS Credit Cooperative, BCS Credit Cooperative, BCS Credit Cooperative, Hijo Employees ARB Coop, Silangan Multi-Purpose Cooeprative, Diamond Farms ARB MPC, DAPCO ARB Beneficiaries, Tagnanan CARP Beneficiaries Cooperative, USPD Multi-Purpose Cooperative, Samal Island MPC, Toril Community Cooperative, Regional Educators MPC, Kapalong Cooperative,Hijo ARB Cooperative and Pantukan Chess Club Cooperative. (JKL)
