FG Moves To Transform Cooperative Sector With Bank, Digital Registry

The Federal Government on Thursday urged cooperative societies in Nigeria’s South-South region to support the proposed Cooperative Bank of Nigeria and the National Cooperative Sector Digitalization Drive.

The Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security and Supervising Minister of Cooperative Affairs, Aliyu Abdullahi, made the call in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, during the South-South Zonal Engagement of the Ministerial Advocacy Tour.

The engagement formed part of the 2026 United Nations International Day of Cooperatives celebration and was held under the theme, “Cooperatives for a Peaceful World.”

The statement signed by the FMAFS Head, Department of Information, Ezeaja Ikemefuna, noted that Abdullahi, who was represented by his Special Assistant on Cooperative and Farmers Welfare, Victor Oyegoke, said the Federal Government was implementing the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (RH-CRRP 2030) to reposition the cooperative sector.

He said cooperatives could support employment, poverty reduction, financial inclusion, food security and community development.

“By creating jobs, reducing poverty, promoting social justice, empowering women and youth, strengthening food systems and fostering community ownership, cooperatives continue to prove that sustainable peace is built on inclusive economic opportunities,” he said.

The Minister said the South-South region had a significant place in Nigeria’s cooperative history and should play a leading role in implementing the reforms.

According to him, RH-CRRP 2030, approved by the National Council on Cooperative Affairs, focuses on using cooperatives to strengthen food security, financial inclusion, enterprise development and employment.

He said the first major initiative under the programme was the proposed Cooperative Bank of Nigeria.

The bank, he said, would be “government-enabled but cooperatively owned and controlled” and would provide financial services to farmers, artisans, traders, MSMEs, women, youths and cooperative enterprises.

“I therefore call on cooperative societies throughout the South-South Zone to actively participate in the ongoing Share Capital Mobilization Campaign and become foundation owners of this historic institution,” Abdullahi said.

The second initiative is the National Cooperative Sector Digitalization Drive, under which the Ministry is developing the National Cooperative Digital Architecture Platform.

The first phase, known as the National Cooperative Smart Registry, will assign a Cooperative Verification Number to registered cooperative societies and a Cooperative Member Identification Number to individual members.

“These digital innovations will strengthen governance, eliminate fraudulent cooperatives, improve transparency, facilitate access to finance, attract investment and position the Nigerian cooperative movement within the formal digital economy,” Abdullahi said.

He stressed that the reforms were “movement-driven, not government projects imposed from above,” and required participation from cooperative societies, governments, federations, development partners, investors and individual members.

The Bayelsa Commissioner for Trade, Industry and Investment, Ebieri Jones, said the state government was regulating cooperative societies through the ministry and its Bureau of Cooperatives.

He said the bureau had reformed the governance structure of cooperative societies in the state to enable them to remain active and deliver returns to members.

The President of the Bayelsa Cooperative Federation, Toney Soroh, commended the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security for the reforms and said the state’s 43 active cooperative societies would subscribe to shares in the proposed bank.

The event had in attendance over 40 cooperative societies.