Cooperatives and farmers association as a model of entrepreneurship in Serbian agriculture regarding the case of Nišava district

Abstract

The authors gave a brief overview on the situation of cooperatives in Serbia. They introduce us to the cooperative legislation which will be, in the current period, important factor in the development of agricultural cooperatives. Serbia is obligated to harmonize its laws with the laws of European Union. The process of harmonization should be done with the cooperative legislation, too. In the current conditions, the survival of the cooperative is threatened by transition. In the transition process it is required from agricultural cooperatives to return forcefully confiscated land to their rightful owners or their heirs. It is also necessary to return the land taken away from its members and given to the cooperatives to manage it. This process has largely been completed. Some agricultural cooperatives ceased to exist in the transition. At the end, the authors have made a study on the situation in cooperatives in Nišava district. The aim of the research is to analyze the results of the application of the concept of cooperative organization and association of farmers in the transition process.

Keywords

• cooperatives
• farmers' associations
• cooperatives legislation