Discussion

Exercise3 .Answer the questions:

1. What does the term «Classification of cooperatives» mean?

2. What are the main features of their grouping?

3. What is the functional purpose of the basic types of cooperatives?

Exercise4 . Speak about the main types of cooperatives in your region

Exercise 5. Translate into Russian. Underline the Complex Object

1. Cooperatives are known to be multifunctional: mixed, multipurpose or general purpose cooperatives.

2. The International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) was announced to protect the interest of cooperative movement in all its forms.

3. The delegation of cooperatives is reported to have arrived

4. At present consumer cooperatives are expected to sell more goods

5. The experiment proved to be failure.

6. Sales cooperatives are regarded as growing from year to year.

7. He is said to leave for America.

8. Credit cooperatives are considered to gain more and more momentum

9. Cooperation is belied to provide social services to the population.

10. I happened to meet him yesterday.

11. He was said to know several foreign languages.

12. He is not likely to understand you.

13. Multipurpose cooperatives are intended to be engaged in sales, processing, transport, trade, insurance service and so on.

14. She seemed to love him.

15. The changes are likely to be announced in the April Budget.

Unit 9. Cooperative movement in russia

Active vocabulary

Influential – влиятельный

respect - отношение

total turnover- общий товарооборот

everyday demand commodities – товары первой необходимости

to vary from …to –составлять от … до…

preference - льгота

to vary out one’s activities –осуществлять свою деятельность

rural trading system – сельская торговая система

to question – ставить под вопрос

to be passed – быть принятым

to possess equal rights – обладать равными правами

to reduce – сокращать, снижать

to put in force – вводить в действие

estimation – оценка

The Constıtutent Assembley of the Credit Union League – Ассамблея Лиги кредитных союзов

long standing - давний

to paticipate in – принимать участие в

housing cooperative – жилищный кооператив

housing-construction cooperative – жилищно-строительный кооператив

multipurpose - многогранный

dwelling - жилье

Text A

THE DEVELOPMENT OF DIFFERENT KINDS OF COOPERATIVES

Before the revolution of 1917 not a single cooperative sector of Russia was developing so quickly as consumer cooperation. Consumer cooperation was the most influential in the economic and social respect. In the end of 1917 consumer cooperatives possessed 46,000 shops, goods exchange and distribution units.

During the years of the Soviet power consumer cooperation was used by the state to reorganize private trade into a collective socialist trade. With this aim consumer cooperation was given considerable advantages and preferences. Thus consumer cooperation was varying out its activities in the more advantageous social and economic conditions than private traders.

Since 1935 and up to the present moment consumer cooperation has been providing trade services mainly to the rural population.

By the beginning of market reforms (1991) consumer cooperation remained a large rural trading system: its share in the total volume of the country retail trade was almost 30%.

But during the first years of reforms (1991—1994) consumer cooperation didn't possess necessary legal, social, economic, and ideological preconditions for its development.

More favourable economic conditions for the development of consumer cooperation appeared in the country. The government provided assistance in its development: taxes were reduced, were given preferences in the payments of energy bills, payment of debts to commercial banks were postponed.

The ideology of the consumer cooperation leaders has also changed. They started to pay more attention to social activity, satisfaction of the material and other needs of the consumer societies members.

Absence of legal preconditions — the law on consumer cooperation questioned its very existence. The situation was saved by the energetic actions of Centrosoyuz directed at working out the law «On Consumer Cooperation», which was passed in 1992.

In the new Civil Code of the Russian Federation, which has been put in force since January 1, 1995, consumer and production cooperatives are considered as the subjects of the economy possessing equal rights.

Consumer cooperation has entered the 21st century as a large social and economic system, which is fulfilling necessary to the society social mission on meeting material and other needs of shareholders and mainly the rural population, which it serves.

Text B

The agricultural cooperation in Russia before the revolution of 1917 represented quite a powerful and developed sector. Such types of cooperatives as agricultural partnerships, agricultural societies, dairy partnerships (cheese and butter producing artels), and sales cooperatives were successfully developing in the rural areas.

Now there appeared new types of agricultural cooperatives. They were founded on the basis of the primary subdivisions of the reorganized kolkhozes and sovkhozes.

The law «On Agricultural Cooperation» was adopted by the State Duma and put in force since December 16, 1995. The law as well as the Civil Code stipulates two types of cooperatives:

• production (for profit cooperatives);

• consumer (not for profit cooperatives).

According to the law «On Agricultural Cooperation» production agricultural cooperatives include kolkhozes (agricultural artels and fishing artels) and cooperative business units.

Consumer agricultural cooperatives include processing, trade, service, supply, horticultural, cattle growing, credit, and insurance cooperatives.

According to the estimations of the Russian economists Russia in 1916 possessed 10,687 credit cooperatives. The revival of credit cooperatives became possible in the 1980s.

The main principles of the credit unions movement were formulated in Suzdal, which later became known as The Suzdal Declaration.

In November 1994 they held the Constituent Assembly of the Credit Unions League and the first Charter of the CU League was registered in March 1995. The founders of the League became 3 credit unions (CU), which later were followed by other 3 CU from 13 regions of the Russian Federation. In parallel with the foundation of the League they embarked on the road of setting up regional associations. The Insurance Company is an important institution in the movement of credit unions.

Institutionally the league founded two institutions — the Insurance Company and the Credit Unions Fund, which was registered in 1996.

The League of Credit Unions is an influential member of the international organization — World Council of Credit Unions.

Besides the League of Credit Cooperatives a non-governmental not-for-profit organization «The Union of Rural Credit Cooperatives» was founded in Russia in August 1997. The Union was set up with the view of creating favorable conditions for the emergence and development of rural credit cooperation on the territory of the Russian Federation.

Production cooperatives in Russia possess long-standing traditions. First such associations in the form of work artels, producers' as well as producers' and supply partnerships appeared in Russia as far back as in the 19^th century. But they started to develop really fast only at the beginning of the 20^th century when cooperatives began to embrace not only the sphere of purely domestic crafts, but the sphere of the agricultural produce processing. Among such cooperatives the most successful became creameries and cheese dairies, flax-processing and potato-processing partnerships.

With the adoption of the federal law «On Production Cooperatives» 1996 cooperatives acquired the status of the independent organizational and legal form in the market economy of the country

Today according to experts estimations there are up to 20,000 production cooperatives left in Russia. Participating in the solution of the unemployment problem production cooperatives provide for the formation of the middle class. Production cooperatives are the most important part of the social sector of the economy.

Housing cooperatives satisfy to a great extent the need in dwelling. There are more than 40 thousand of housing cooperatives in Russia.

They distinguish between housing and housing-construction consumer cooperatives.

A housing-construction cooperative (HCC) is founded for the construction of an apartment house and its further exploitation. HCC can buy dwelling areas, which need capital repairs and renovation.

Housing cooperatives (HC) are founded for purchasing from organizations, associations and organs of local power of new or capitally repaired (or renovated) apartment houses and their further exploitation.

Interregional Federation of Housing Cooperatives (IFHC) unites all housing cooperatives.

The above-mentioned directions are far from giving a complete picture of the multipurpose activities, which cooperative organizations can carry out in the sphere of social services. Such services as help in the household activity (tilling of personal plots of land, repairs of home roofs, and general renovation of homes etc.), funeral and other services are in great demand, which is proved by the experience of the Lipetsk, Chuvash, Udmurt, Belgorod, Vladmir, and other consumer unions.

According to its type of activity and to its social and economic nature each cooperative organization represents a social cooperative, which is in the constant search for new types of activity on providing social services to the population.

Exercise 1. Give a title to each text

Exercise 2. Workıng on the information. Agree or disagree

1. Constitution of the Russian Federation doesnt allow different forms of ownership.

2. One of the basic legal regulations of cooperative organizations in Russia is Constitution.

3. Cooperative laws provide a broader legal field of activities for cooperatives.

4. Before the revolution of 1917 no cooperatives were developing.

5. At the present moment consumer cooperation is providing its services only in towns.

6. In 1991 the law ‘On Consuner Cooperation’ was passed in Russia.

7. Consuner cooperation has entered the 21^st century as a large social and economic system.

8. The agricultural cooperation in Russia has never represented a powerfull sector.

9. The revival of credit cooperation became possible in the 1980s.

10. Production cooperatives have the status of the independent organisational and legal form in the market economy.

11. Housing cooperatives satisfy the need in dwelling.

Exercise 3. Workıng on the information. Quote the sentences in which the following information is used

1. В новом Гражданском Кодексе РФ потребительские и производственные кооперативы рассматриваются как субъекты экономики, обладающие равными правами.

2. Законы о кооперативных организациях и их Уставы определяют правовые, организационные, экономические и социальные основы создания и деятельности кооперативов и их объединений.

3. Потребительская кооперация, осуществляет деятельность в более благоприятных социальных и экономических условиях, чем частные торговцы.

4. Появились новые виды сельскохозяйственных кооперативов.

5. К сельскохозяйственным кооперативам относятся: перерабатывающие, сбытовые, садоводческие, огороднические, животноводческие.

6. Страховая компания является важным институтом в движении кредитных союзов.

7. Производственные кооперативы стали развиваться по настоящему быстро только в начале ХХ века.

Exercise 4. Choose and read aloud the sentences, write construction «to be going to» in the meaning of future. Translate them into Russian.

1. At the moment we are going to the nearest café.

2. We are going to discuss the problem of increasing milk production during the conference.

3. Look at them! I think they are going to the Institute.

4. Excuse me! I am going to the Central Bank. Will I cross the road?

5. He is going to enter our cooperative very soon.

6. It seems to me that these shareholders are going to become bankrupts.

7. Are you going my way?

8. My father is going to make profit of it.

9. Next year cooperatives are going to be given more autonomy.

10. United cooperative society is going to stand.