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Asian Journal of Agriculture and Development (AJAD) - Call for papers!

Exploring social capital and cooperativism among the Getasan dairy cattle farmers in Semarang Regency, Central Java, Indonesia

(Indonesia), Master of Science in Community Development (University of the Philippines Los Baños)

Thesis Abstract:

The study aimed to explore the role of social capital and cooperativism in dairy cattle farming in Semarang Regency, Central Java Province. The study was conducted in Getasan Village in Getasan District, Semarang Regency using the survey research design. A sample of 96 respondents was drawn from the population of dairy cattle farmers in Getasan Village.
 
The study showed that dairy cattle are an important source of income in Getasan Village. Almost all dairy cattle farmers in Getasan Village were members of the cooperatives. The cooperatives were important for economic advancement and farmers’ welfare. Social capital played an important role in improving the performance of dairy cattle farming and it enhanced the dairy cattle farmers’ cooperation with each other. The results indicated that the variables of social capital (i.e., network and membership, social trust, and collective action) had significant relationship with the variables of cooperativism (i.e., sharing of knowledge and information, sharing of resources, and participation in decision-making), while cooperativism was found to have a significant relationship with the performance indicators of dairy cattle farming. The study showed that the farmers’ objectives to participate in cooperatives were to increase their welfare and to extend involvement in the group. In addition, collective action had a significant relationship with cooperativism. A farmer who participated in collective activities was more likely to expect more benefits from the cooperatives. Lastly, there was a high level of trust and participation in the cooperatives.
 
The study provided some recommendations and proposed using social capital as indicator in the design and implementation of dairy cattle development projects.