The Purpose of this Act is to—
| (a) | promote the development of sustainable co-operatives that comply with co-operative principles, thereby increasing the number and variety of economic enterprises operating in the formal economy; |
| (b) | encourage persons and groups who subscribe to values of self-reliance and self-help, and who choose to work together in democratically controlled enterprises, to register co-operatives in terms of this Act; |
| (c) | enable such co-operative enterprises to register and acquire a legal status separate from their members; |
| (d) | promote equity and greater participation in the formation of, and management of, co-operatives by persons from previously disadvantaged communities, as determined by the Minister by notice in the Gazette; |
[Section 2(d) substituted by section 2(a) of Notice No. 558, GG 36729, dated 5 August 2013]
| (e) | establish a legislative framework that preserves a co-operative as a distinct legal entity; |
| (f) | facilitate the provision of support programmes that target newly formed and emerging co-operatives, particularly those whose members are persons from previously disadvantaged communities, as determined by the Minister by notice in the Gazette, and that promote equity and greater participation by such members; |
[Section 2(f) substituted by section 2(b) of Notice No. 558, GG 36729, dated 5 August 2013]
| (g) | ensure the design and implementation of the co-operative development support programmes by all the relevant agencies of national department, provinces and other entities established for furthering the purposes of the co-operative sector, and compliance with uniform norms and standards prescribed by this Act; |
[Section 2(g) substituted by section 2(b) of Notice No. 558, GG 36729, dated 5 August 2013]
| (h) | ensure the design and implementation of the co-operative support measures across all spheres of government, including delivery agencies, and adherence to a uniform framework of established norms and standards that reflect fairness, equity, transparency, economy, efficiency, accountability and lawfulness; |
| (i) | facilitate the effective co-ordination and reporting mechanism across all spheres of government through the department; and |
| (j) | promote the establishment of public private partnerships as contemplated in the Public Finance Management Act, the Municipal Finance Management Act, 2003 (Act No. 56 of 2003), and the Treasury Regulations. |
[Section 2(j) inserted by section 2(c) of Notice No. 558, GG 36729, dated 5 August 2013]
