150 Years of the Cooperative Movement

ANNIVERSARIES

150 Years of the Cooperative Movement in Slovenia

The beginnings of the cooperative movement in Slovenia are closely tied up with the protection of Slovene farmers and their ability to maintain possession of the land. With the abolition of serfdom in 1848, peasants and farmers in Slovenia gained ownership of the majority of the land, but with ownership came obligations, in particular financial obligations. Farmers sought a way out by borrowing money at usurious rates of interest, which led numerous farms to ruin and forced many people to emigrate. Conditions were ripe for the development of the cooperative movement, the start of which is considered to be the establishment of the first savings and credit cooperative in Ljutomer in 1872.

Cooperativism is a business model whose activities are guided by cooperative values and principles, the aim of which is not merely to make a profit but to pursue the economic and social benefit of the members of the cooperative. It is based on a voluntary approach, freedom to withdraw, equal cooperation and self-management by members.

Around three million cooperatives operate in numerous economic sectors around the world, bringing together more than a billion members and providing work for 10% of the world’s employed population. There are currently 411 cooperatives registered in Slovenia, 60 of which – active in the agriculture and forestry sectors – are voluntarily enrolled in the Cooperative Union of Slovenia. The latter bring together 13,500 family farms and provide 2,600 jobs in rural areas. Although the cooperatives that make up the Cooperative Union of Slovenia only represent 15% of all cooperatives in Slovenia, they generate 87% of all cooperative income and account for 95% of all cooperative jobs.

Cooperative Union of Slovenia