Ruto vows to hunt down thieves looting cooperatives

President William Ruto in Homa Ba. [File. Standard]

President William Ruto has warned that his administration will aggressively recover stolen cooperative funds and prosecute those responsible as Kenya rolls out reforms to clean up the sector.

Ruto's message was delivered by Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi on Saturday during the 103rd International Cooperative Day at Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC).

"Let me be clear: my administration will vigorously pursue the recovery of misappropriated funds and will hold accountable anyone found culpable, in strict accordance with the law," said Ruto.

The government is implementing the Cooperative Bill No. 7 of 2024 to tighten governance, protect against climate risks and require youth inclusion in cooperatives.

A task force is reviewing the SACCO Societies Act to seal loopholes that have enabled theft.

"My government's reform agenda firmly asserts that cooperatives are the backbone of economic empowerment, social cohesion and national resilience," noted Ruto.

He called on public and private sector players to join efforts to build a stronger economy through cooperatives.

The coffee sector is a priority under the reforms, with tighter licensing, a Sh 6.8 billion debt waiver and an increase in the Coffee Cherry Fund that has lifted some farmers' earnings from Sh 50 to Sh 172 per kilogram.

"We have also scaled up the Coffee Cherry Advance Revolving Fund, boosting its capitalization from Sh 3 billion to Sh 4.75 billion," explained Ruto.

In the cotton and dairy sectors, over Sh 4.6 billion has been allocated to revive ginneries and modernise New KCC.

The government is also expanding cooperatives into all wards, including arid and semi-arid regions, to improve access to credit, markets and farm inputs.