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A new co-operative law will help to raise the profile of Bolivian co-operatives. The legislation, passed by the Bolivian Senate in April, was ratified by President Evo Morales on the same day.
Albino García, the president of the National Confederation of Co-operatives of Bolivia, said the law, which is replacing the Law of Co-operative Societies, gives the sector the recognition it deserved. “We are not a private entity, we are social entities and the new law recognises this,” he said.
Hoggier Hurtado, President of the Bolivian Federation of Credit and Saving Co-operatives (FEBOCAC), added: “The new General Law of Co-operatives of Bolivia, passed on 11 April, fills-in a great vacuum and satisfies a longing desire of the Bolivian co-operative movement, considering that the old law was dating back to 1958 and many articles should have been amended, but never were. This, in turn, made many aspirations impossible."
Mr Hurtado said that drafting the new law has led to greater unity and integration among the representatives of those federations involved in the process, as they were all working together to meet their common interests. "We believe this has been a truly positive outcome for the national co-operative movement, especially since many problems with which individual sectors were faced have also been discussed throughout the process,” he added.
According to Mr Hurtado, the new General Co-operative Law is of critical importance because it brings together those articles that the co-operative movement had managed to insert in the Political Constitution of the State. He added that another equally important advancement is having agreed upon a co-operative definition, even though not exactly the one wanted. Universal co-operative principles are now included in the definition.
Mr Hurtado said the law could set an example for other countries in this region because it includes basic concepts of the ILO’s recommendation 193 for the promotion of co-operatives and the legislative framework for co-operatives within the Americas region.
“However, we regret not having been able to achieve some type of decentralisation. It was not possible to connect this law with the Law of Autonomy. The chapter referring to the principles that should govern the co-operative tax framework was also excluded from the law," explained the President of FEBOCAC.
The new law also demands co-operatives to register as limited liability companies and show this in their naming. According to Mr Hurtado, this will not represent an extra cost for co-operatives, most of them already operating as limited liability companies.
Mr Hurtado added that with this new law, the structure of the Bolivian co-operative system was also clarified. As required by the General Co-operative Law, a new regulatory body will be created. The Fiscal Controlling Authority (AFCOOP) will supervise all 15,000 co-operatives operating in Bolivia. This new body will be guided by the Labour Ministry and will replace the National Institute of Co-operatives (INALCO). It will also take over some responsibilities from the National Directorate for Co-operatives (Digeco).
The General Co-operative Law will take into account the particularities of each sector. The law divides co-operatives according to the sectors in which they operate: production (agriculture, mining), services (credit and saving, housing, consumer, transport) and public services (telecommunications, electricity, water). Each one of these sectors will have individual laws and regulations. Credit and saving co-operatives will be supervised by two separate bodies: AFCOOP and the Supervisory Authority of the Financial System (ASFI).
Another important aspect of this new law is that co-operatives will be able to associate creating production networks with the aim of fulfilling all needs of a specific population or region.
Photo: Hoggier Hurtado, President of FEBOCAC.
