Credit Mobilization And The Development Of Cooperative Businesses In Imo State, Nigeria

This study examined the influence of credit mobilization on the development of cooperative businesses in Imo State, Nigeria. Three objectives guided the study: to assess the influence of credit mobilization on financial sustainability, examine the effect of member savings mobilization on capital base expansion, and investigate the influence of loan repayment ratio on investment capacity. The study was anchored on Resource Mobilization Theory and adopted a descriptive survey design. The study drew on information from 15 purposively selected agricultural cooperative societies across the three senatorial zones of Imo State. A sample of 377 respondents was determined, and 368 completed questionnaires were returned, representing a response rate of 97.6%. Data were collected with a structured questionnaire reported to have a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.89. Descriptive statistics and simple ordinary least squares regression were used for analysis. The reported ANOVA results indicated statistically significant relationships between credit mobilization and financial sustainability (F = 6,134.021, p < .001), member savings mobilization and capital base expansion (F = 6,828.277, p < .001), and loan repayment ratio and investment capacity (F = 34,306.981, p < .001). The findings suggest that access to mobilized credit, regular member savings, and timely loan repayment are important financial processes associated with cooperative development. The study recommends transparent credit procedures, consistent savings programmes, and stronger loan appraisal and recovery systems. The statistical tables in the source document contain inconsistencies in some reported model-summary values; these should be checked against the original SPSS output before journal submission.