Philippine Cooperative Code of 2008 (Republic Act No. 9520) Key Terminology

Vocabulary flashcards defining legal terms, cooperative categories, structural units, and roles established in the Philippine Cooperative Code of 2008 (Republic Act No. 9520).

Philippine Cooperative Code of 2008

The official title of Republic Act No. 9520, an act amending Chapters I to XVII of Republic Act No. 6938 (the Cooperative Code of the Philippines).

Cooperative

An autonomous and duly registered association of persons, with a common bond of interest, who have voluntarily joined together to achieve their social, economic, and cultural needs and aspirations by making equitable contributions to the capital required, patronizing their products and services, and accepting a fair share of the risks and benefits in accordance with universally accepted cooperative principles.

Member

A person, either natural or juridical, who adheres to the principles set forth in the Code and Articles of Cooperative and has been admitted by the cooperative as a member.

General Assembly

The full membership of the cooperative duly assembled for the purpose of exercising all the rights and performing all the obligations pertaining to cooperatives as provided by the Code, its articles of cooperation, and bylaws.

Board of Directors

The body entrusted with the management of the affairs of the cooperative under its articles of cooperation and bylaws, responsible for strategic planning, direction-setting, and policy-formulation activities.

Committee

Any body entrusted with specific functions and responsibilities under the bylaws or resolution of the general assembly or the board of directors.

Articles of Cooperation

The registered articles of cooperation under the Code, including any registered amendment thereof.

Bylaws

The registered bylaws under the Code, including any registered amendment thereof.

Registration

The operative act granting juridical personality to a proposed cooperative, as evidenced by a certificate of registration issued by the Authority.

Cooperative Development Authority

The government agency in charge of the registration and regulation of cooperatives, referred to as the Authority in the Code.

Representative Assembly

The full membership of a body of representatives elected by sectors, chapters, or districts of a cooperative duly assembled to exercise powers lawfully delegated by the general assembly.

Officers of the Cooperative

Includes members of the board of directors, members of different committees created by the general assembly, general manager or chief executive officer, secretary, treasurer, and members holding other positions provided in the bylaws.

Social Audit

A procedure wherein the cooperative assesses its social impact and ethical performance vis-à-vis its stated mission, vision, goals, and code of social responsibility.

Performance Audit

An audit on the efficiency and effectiveness of the cooperative as a whole, its management and officers, and its various responsibility centers.

Single-Line or Single-Purpose Cooperative

A cooperative undertaking activities which are related to its main line of business or purpose.

Service Cooperative

A cooperative that provides any type of service to its members, including transport, information and communication, insurance, housing, electric, health services, education, banking, and savings and credit.

Subsidiary Cooperative

Refers to three (3) or more primary cooperatives, doing the same line of business, registered with the Authority to undertake business activities in support of member-cooperatives.

Primary Cooperative

A category of cooperative whose members are natural persons.

Secondary Cooperative

A category of cooperative whose members are primary cooperatives.

Tertiary Cooperative

A category of cooperative whose members are secondary cooperatives.

Federation of Cooperatives

An organization of registered cooperatives organized according to business activity type to carry on complementary cooperative enterprises, educational work, and advisory services.

Cooperative Union

An organization of registered cooperatives and federations formed to represent member interests, disseminate economic/statistical info, sponsor studies, and promote cooperative principles without engaging in business activities.

Regular Member

A cooperative member who has complied with all membership requirements and is entitled to all rights and privileges of membership.

Associate Member

A cooperative member who has no right to vote nor be voted upon and is entitled only to rights and privileges provided by the bylaws.

Laboratory Cooperative

A cooperative organized by minors and affiliated with a registered cooperative, governed by special guidelines promulgated by the Authority.

Credit Cooperative

A financial organization owned and operated by its members that promotes savings and lending services to provide financial assistance for productive and provident purposes.

Consumers Cooperative

A cooperative whose primary purpose is to procure and distribute commodities to members and non-members.

Producers Cooperative

A cooperative that undertakes joint agricultural or industrial production and processes raw materials produced by its members into finished products for sale.

Marketing Cooperative

A cooperative engaged in supplying production inputs to members and marketing their products.

Multipurpose Cooperative

A cooperative that combines two (2) or more business activities of different cooperative types.

Advocacy Cooperative

A primary cooperative that promotes and advocates cooperativism through socially oriented projects, education, training, research, and communication.

Agrarian Reform Cooperative

A cooperative organized by marginal farmers, a majority of whom are agrarian reform beneficiaries, to develop land tenure, land development, consolidation, or land management systems in agrarian reform areas.

Cooperative Bank

A bank organized primarily to provide a wide range of financial services to cooperatives and their members under the supervision of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

Financial Service Cooperative

A financial organization owned and operated by its members, authorized to provide savings, credit, and other BSP-regulated financial services exclusively to its members.

Cooperative Estate

Landholdings like plantations, estates, or haciendas acquired by the State under CARP collectively owned by worker-beneficiaries under a cooperative set-up.

Public Service Cooperative

A cooperative organized to render public services authorized under a franchise or certificate of public convenience and necessity issued by the appropriate government agency.

Share

A unit of capital in a primary cooperative with a par value fixed at any figure not exceeding One thousand pesos ($P1,000.00$).