3g6 SCIENCE IN AFRICA 



and treasurer had to be done by agricultural officers, but most of 

 the societies have now their own African secretaries and treasurers, 

 who usually work under supervision from European members of 

 the department of agriculture. Loans are advanced to the societies 

 by government; for example, in 1935 the total sum advanced 

 was about /^6,ooo, all of which was repaid without trouble. Pro- 

 gress has also been made in organizing the producers of rice, coco- 

 nuts, and cotton. The department claims to have proved that 

 Africans of the Gold Coast can be persuaded to organize themselves 

 for the co-operative solution of their problems. 



In Nigeria a similar move to institute co-operative societies was 

 started by the agricultural department, but so far only the market- 

 ing side of agriculture is included in their activities. For example, 

 numerous cocoa societies, with membership varying from 20 to 

 200 have been established, and each maintains a store at its head- 

 quarters for the deposition of the crop from every member's 

 plantation. In the area around Ibadan all the societies belong to 

 a Marketing Union, which undertakes the sale, and after expenses 

 have been deducted, proceeds are divided among the members in 

 proportion to the size of their crops. Thereby the activities of the 

 middleman, who formerly often bought the crop before harvesting, 

 at a very low assessment, have been restricted, and the large export- 

 ing firms such as U.A.C. and John Holt can now obtain the crop 

 direct from the producer. Each co-operative society is managed 

 by a committee, of whom the secretary is usually the only literate 

 member. A Registrar of Societies was appointed in 1933 and an 

 ordinance for the registration of societies was made in February 

 1936, so that registration would give each society a legal status 

 and would qualify it for supervision by the government. So far, 

 however, there are few societies which are up to a standard suf- 

 ficient to qualify them for registration. In Northern Nigeria the 

 development of mixed farming, referred to above, is essentially 

 dependent on the advance of money for the purchase of cattle, 

 implements, etc., while the crop is marketed largely through the 

 agency of the British Cotton Growing Association. The possibility 

 of substituting a farmers' co-operative society for this system is 

 discussed in the report of the co-operative officer for 1935-7 

 (Nigeria 1938). 



