Cooperatives and Local Leadership

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Periodical article

Title:	Cooperatives and Local Leadership
Author:	Hyden, Goran
Year:	1978
Periodical:	Rural Africana
Issue:	3
Period:	Winter
Pages:	43-59
Language:	English
Geographic term:	Kenya
Subjects:	cooperatives leadership Health and Nutrition Development and Technology
Abstract:	While cooperatives in rural Kenya tend to promote a leadership based on networks of patron-client relations, variations in the leadership of these institutions exist as a result of the socioeconomic characteristics of the particular areas in which they operate. The ensuing leadership patterns have important implications for the performance of these cooperatives as well as illustrating differences in the development of rural Kenya. The article is divided into four parts. The first traces the origin of cooperatives in Kenya and shows why these institutions have developed as platforms for patronage politics. The second part tries to answer the question, who become leaders of the cooperatives? The third deals with the relationships these leaders have with the rural communities and the variations in leadership patterns that emerge as a result of differences among these communities. The final part draws some conclusions that emerge from this data both in relation to performance of cooperatives and trends of development in Kenya. Notes, ref., tab.