Victoria Mbangwa
The Federal Government has unveiled plans to digitize cooperative registration and overhaul the cooperative sector as part of efforts to strengthen food security, job creation, and inclusive growth under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
At a one-day workshop and retreat for staff of the Federal Department of Cooperatives in Abuja, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Dr. Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, said the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (RH-CRRP) is designed to reposition the cooperative movement as a central driver of Nigeria’s economic transformation.
“Across the world, cooperatives have lifted millions out of poverty, expanded access to finance and build strong community resilience. Nigeria can’t afford to be behind that is why we must reform, revamp and reposition cooperative sector to meet the demands of the present and future,” Abdullahi stated.
Key reforms under the programme include policy and regulatory changes to improve governance and accountability, digitalization of cooperative registration at both federal and state levels, as well as capacity-building initiatives focusing on entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and institutional strengthening.
The minister stressed that the retreat was not only about policy discussions but also about fostering unity within the department. “let it be the day when every staff member from the Federal Directors down to the recently recruited officers make a commitment: we are one team ,serving one vision for one Nigeria’,” he charged.
Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr. Marcus Ogunbiyi, urged staff to embrace the programme as an opportunity to build stronger bonds across all cadres. Similarly, the Director of the Federal Department of Cooperatives, Alhaji Idris Sani, said the reforms would also reinforce the Cooperative Federation of Nigeria (CFN) as the umbrella body for the movement.
With the RH-CRRP, the government hopes to build a modern, inclusive, and technology-driven cooperative ecosystem capable of driving national development, creating jobs, and delivering shared prosperity.
