Crédito Solidário e Desenvolvimento Local: o caso da Cooperativa de Crédito da Agricultura Familiar e Economia Solidária de Araponga - MG
economic solidarity credit union, family farms, local development
The aim of this research was to investigate the contributions of the Family Farmers Economic Solidarity Credit Union of Araponga (Ecosol Araponga) for local development in the municipality of Araponga, MG, pointing out also some challenges of the organization. The research was qualitative and descriptive, under the form of case study. The process of data collection involved participant observation and semi-structured interviews with directors / managers and cooperators in July/2010, covering a sample of 50 associates and 5 leaders. The cooperative is managed by its own associated farmers, which enables her to use the information from their network of social relations in the operationalization and strengthening of management of credit in favor of local development. The results show various ways in which both the farmers, as well as the local economic activity are benefiting from the activities of the cooperative. These data indicate that the essence of the cooperative's contribution to local development lies in the fact that it allows access to credit in an amount considered sufficient and in time for the farmers to take advantage of market opportunities and improve their production systems, promoting local movement of financial resources, and opportunities for joint projects.
Alair Ferreira de Freitas, Nora Beatriz Presno Amodeo, Fernanda Dutra da Silva
Universidade Regional do Noroeste do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul