ICOPED Assists Iraya Mangyans in Organizing their Cooperative

San Teodoro, Oriental Mindoro – The Uganayan ng Pahinungod of the University of the Philippines Los Baños in cooperation with the University of the Philippines Manila tapped the Institute of Cooperatives and Bio-Enterprise Development (ICOPED) together with the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) Region 4, to assist the Iraya Mangyan community in Oriental Mindoro in forming their own cooperative. The initiative, which is part of the Livelihood Program of Ugnayan ng Pahinungod Manila,  involved the conduct of a Pre-Membership Education Seminar (PMES) and the organization of interim cooperative officers among the prospective cooperative members of the indigenous group.

The activity, which was conducted in Oriental Mindoro last May 13, 2017, aimed to help the Iraya Mangyans form a marketing cooperative to enable them to have better returns from marketing their agricultural commodities.  As a first step, the Iraya Mangyans were oriented on the nature of a cooperative, the cooperative principles and values, as well as the structure and membership in a cooperative. After an interactive lecture-workshop, a set of interim officers were identified to set the organization of the cooperative in motion.
By organizing themselves into a cooperative, the Iraya Mangyans can benefit from collective marketing by getting more competitive prices for their goods, lowering their marketing costs by achieving economies of scale, having bargaining power in purchasing inputs and setting prices, among others.   

A total of 28 Iraya Mangyans from the municipalities of San Teodoro, Puerto Galera, and Bacu attended the seminar. Ms. Lilia Buela, a Cooperative Development Specialist assigned in Oriental Mindoro, Ms. Arminga B. Peria, University Researcher, and Ms. J.P. Roma D. Domingo, University Extension Specialist of ICOPED served as resource persons for the said activity. JRDDomingo