At first, the group meeting was held at the open field. Then the saving group started to conduct meeting in one room of the health centre for 2 years. Then a cooperative building was constructed with the help of the budget of VDC (Rs. 70, 000), Khotang Integrated Community Development Program implemented by Action Aid Nepal (AAN) and Jana Sewa Samaj Nepal (JSSN), Rs. 200 contribution from each member of the cooperative and other sources.
REFLECT class was observed as the entry point activity of the program in Arkhaule too where the different issues of the village were discussed regularly.
The cooperative was established in 2063/64. Total of 51 village saving groups are associated with the cooperative, with 400 group members and 300 shareholders. The members of 11 child forums are not the shareholders; they are only the saving groups. Monthly saving rate is from Rs. 5 to 50 which vary group to group. There are different type of groups: mothers’ groups – 2, Child groups – 11, Dalitgroup – 5, Women’s group – 7, mixed groups – 26 Total groups – 51
Most of the laon goes in livestock raising, consumers shop, education, and off season vegetable farming. The irony is that most of the members have not utilized the credit in the objectives they promised at the time of disbursement. Only the credit disbursed in consumers shops are utilized according to their objectives. The cooperative doesn’t have any monitoring mechanism yet. The duration of the repayment of credit is from 9 months to 1 year according to their objectives. Interest rate is 24% per annum. Interest rate on saving is 12% per annum. Now the total saving of the cooperative is Rs. 10, 87, 685. Total investment transaction of this year is Rs. 13, 50, 000 which is repaid in the installment of 4 months. Default Loan is only 30,000 to 35,000. One group whose saving was Rs. 500 per month was invested Rs. 61, 100; they did not return the credit. Their saving was Rs. 61, 600 so the principal amount was compensated from their saving and the group was dismissed.
Impacts of Cooperative
1. Improvements in economic condition
The interest rate of the village money lenders is up to 60% per year (5% per month) with the collaterals. Cooperative provided loans at 24% interest on group without collateral; this forced to decrease the interest rate to 24%. So the right holders got easy access to credit which ultimately increased their involvement economic activities and helped to improve their livelihood.
2. Impacts on Dalit members
The direct impacts on Dalit are not evaluated but the saving culture is developed among them. The education of their children has become easier from the credit provided by their own cooperative. They have understood that interest rate is affordable and there is no conditionality. The members of the cooperatives utilize at least 50% of the credit on their stated objectives. An "Education Camp" was organized by cooperative and JSSN –to educate them to increase the awareness about cooperatives. After that the Dalit community is attracted towards cooperative. The members who discontinued the saving have also realized the need of group and cooperatives and started to save again. Some members of Dalit community discontinued saving due to the failure of pig rearing project.
Challenges
State level policy and insufficient service and support are the great challenges for the infant cooperative. The information sharing inside the organization is another challenge. The cooperative have no step forward for the linkage and coordination with district level agencies except the district level cooperative network. The district level cooperative network is not functioning properly. Due to the lack of education of the board members, they cannot understand the transactions. The group members still fear to keep their voice in any platforms. Some executive committee members are passive as they have not paid on their loans. Some members are not active as managing cooperative is voluntary work. The unmarried women, who received cooperative management training, are leaving the village after marriage, due to which, the cooperative is facing human resource crisis. The cooperative has now taken a decision to provide training to daughter-in-laws in order to avoid such crisis in future. Due to the inactiveness of the district level cooperative network the consumer cooperative shop is affected. It has paid the amount for the wholesale dealer in advance but the dealers are not sending the goods as other cooperatives are not paying to the wholesaler.
Sustainability
Saving and credit district action network established in 2060. Up to three years, the forum organized only the cooperatives formed under the Khotang Integrated Community Development Program of AAN/JSSN and later the forum represented all the cooperatives in the district and the cooperatives affiliated with JSSN are now leading the district action network.
Consumers' Cooperative
Consumers cooperative was established in 2066 to grab the opportunity of the government policy of one village one cooperative with providing cash support. The cooperative has got Rs. 1, 00, 000 through District Agriculture Development Office and added Rs. 55, 000 to start the shop.