ABOUT US
Organizational Description
MASS-SPECC Cooperative Development Center is Mindanao’s oldest and largest regional co-op federation. In 1966, the Southern Philippines Educational Cooperative Center (SPECC) was organized by mostly parish-based credit unions, with the realization that co-op development comes from co-operative education. The co-ops then established the Mindanao Alliance of Self-Help Societies (MASS) to provide support services and represent the co-operatives’ interest with the government and stakeholders. Both secondary organizations merged into what is now known as MASS-SPECC – a federation that continuously grows co-ops into a strong movement for more than 50 years already. MASS-SPECC empowers and capacitates its affiliate co-operatives through its varied services (e.g., ICT, Loans, Training, Consultancy) and development advocacies for the marginalized sectors. It encourages co-ops to create and support unified programs to achieve the co-op movement’s vision of “All Members Enjoy Better Quality of Life” by reducing poverty and promoting inclusive growth.
A. Membership and Geographical Coverage
As of 2020, MASS-SPECC has 335 primary affiliate co-operatives operating in different parts of Mindanao. The combined individual membership of the federation sums up to approximately 1.6 million, owning altogether assets at an estimated value of Php 141B.
Regarding the type of co-ops, the majority (63%) are multi-purpose co-operatives, 26% are savings and credit co-operatives, while the rest are classified as service co-operatives. They are distributed in all the regions in Mindanao.
B. Development Advocacy for Marginalized Sectors
In recent years, MASS SPECC has been strengthening its advocacy role, guiding its affiliate cooperatives towards a common development agenda. It has encouraged cooperatives to deepen their services to members and the community, in particular in addressing the needs of marginalized sectors (i.e. farmers, fisherfolk, indigenous peoples, women, informal sector) so that members belonging to these sectors will not be left behind in the cooperative’s economic progress. It has mobilized cooperatives to put up a common fund for the environmental protection and response to natural disasters. Its general assembly in 2014 worked on the theme: Cooperating Out of Poverty, encouraging cooperatives to contribute more purposefully towards poverty reduction and inclusive economic growth.
Among the “action points” identified during the general assembly focused on agriculture and agricultural development, encouraging cooperatives to provide more financial and technical support to farmers, particularly in sustainable agriculture (organic farming), facilitate marketing of farmers’ produce, enhance their participation in the value chain through institutional linkages, and centralize marketing for greater market presence and reach.