Financial Stewardship of Cooperatives

This paper aims to explore the concept of stewardship theory applied in the finances of cooperatives. It analyzed patterns between total receivables and gross income, total assets and net surplus, total equity and total assets, number of members and paid-up shares, and paid-up shares and retained earnings over a 7-year panel data of audited financial statements of 657 cooperatives in the seven (7) provinces of the Cordillera Administrative Region, Philippines. A curve estimate was used to interpret the cooperatives’ commitment to stewardship theory as applied in their finances. The result reveals weaknesses in terms of the cooperatives’ commitment to stewardship theory that could bring negative impact on their financial performance. The result brings practical implication which recommends that the cooperative leaders, members and employees must have greater commitment to financial stewardship.