Social Capital and Cooperative Society Lending in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria

Cooperatives societies are seen as dependable and quick financial bailout institutions which can be used by business owners to secure quick and minimum interest on loans. This ethnographic study provides an understanding of the lending activities and criteria of obtaining a loan from co-operative societies in Ibadan, Nigeria as well as the social factors influencing how people access these loans. This empirical study gathered data using unobtrusive observation by attending weekly meetings of the cooperative (comprising of 102 members), asking questions during discussion times in the meeting as well as interacting with members of the co-operative society for 18 months. Additionally, 10 key informant interviews were done. Findings show that a strong social capital is needed and vital in obtaining loans in a co-operative society. The study concluded that cooperative societies are effective in lending business loans and supporting entrepreneurship but intending members must plan to join alongside others who can stand as guarantors for them in order to access loans easily and quickly. It is recommended that cooperative societies should find a modality of assisting those with no social resource to stand for them as guarantor in order to be able to help more people to start or grow their business enterprise. Those with no social resources should mingle well with other members in order to build one.