Meaning and Definition of Cooperative

Definition of cooperative

In general terms, the term cooperative is used when you want to give an account of the trend towards cooperation presented by an individual.
Meanwhile, the more extended use the word cooperative observing is that refers to that autonomous association of persons who join voluntarily in order to cope with their own needs and aspirations economic, social and cultural through, then, of the formation of a democratic organization, whose management and administration shall be carried out as agreed by all the partners that comprise. I.e., unlike many companies that have a sole owner and one person who is responsible for making important decisions, in cooperatives, all partners are possessors of it and all decisions in the framework of absolute democracy.
Although a cooperative in regard to its action, is based on the production of private enterprise model, placed several differences with respect to the latter, basically for the following reasons: a cooperative cares for common benefits and services, gain served for the provision of services, especially those of quality and very cheap and to report certain benefits to members. In addition, in a cooperative, the partner is that directs and governs with the participation of all, i.e., is a co-gobierno, the amount of these is usually unlimited and with regard to earnings, over which it produces is returned to members in proportion to their activities and services.
Most outstanding values that all cooperatives pursue, propose and manifest include: self-effort, mutual aid, responsibility, democracy, equality, equity, solidarity and freedom.
Meanwhile, according to the objective proposed and more then they play, is that it can differentiate between different types of cooperatives, for example, associated labour cooperatives, cooperative of consumers and users, agricultural, of credit unions, of service, transport, of housing, of credit, of teaching, of tourism, of Commerce, of supplies, among others.
The cooperative today is the most widespread form of social economy in the world and is the International Cooperative Alliance, the international organization that deals systematically promote the feeling and the cooperative movement in the world from the year 1895.