State threatens to revoke licenses of 13,000 Saccos over non-compliance

Cooperatives Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya (left) during a strategic meeting with Western region administrative leadership and cooperative directors to fast-track coffee revitalisation programme at his Likuyani home in Kakamega county. [Mary Imenza, Standard]

The government has given 13,000 cooperatives a 21-day ultimatum to comply with financial accountability or have their licenses revoked in new reforms.

Speaking in Kakamega after a coordination meeting that brought together teams from five Western counties to align with coffee farming implementation strategies, Cooperatives Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya noted that only 2,700 out of 13,000 registered Saccos have submitted the required returns.

"We directed all Saccos to comply by making returns and when you make returns, one of the most important documents is the financial statement to show how the Saccos have been operating and this is where the problem lies," said Oparanya.

"This issue came up from the Commissioner of Cooperatives and out of the 13,000 cooperatives, only 2,700 have responded and we are going to give them another 21 days to comply, failure to which we are going to cancel their licenses so that they are either inactive, dormant or they are not operating at all," he added.

In new reforms that are aimed at streamlining the sector, especially financial prudence and accountability, the CS said all Saccos will be required to have at least 1,000 members in order to be registered.

"We have come up with strict regulations, before even 10 people could come up and form a Sacco. As of now we have stopped the registration of Saccos until the recommendations we have received from the committee of experts that I formed last year are implemented. They have come up with the recommendation we want to implement through the National Assembly," said Oparanya.

"Some of the key recommendations we have come up with are that to form a Sacco you must have 1000 members and a minimum share capital of Sh10 million, and this will be the new norm moving forward," he added.

Ikolomani MP Bernard Shinali, who is also the Chairperson of the National Assembly Committee on Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, welcomed the recommendations, saying that the national government is doing enough in funding cooperatives to be active, besides funding the coffee sector to ensure farmers have seedlings and pulping machines.

"As lawmakers, we want to thank the Ministry of Cooperatives for the laws we have seen it has brought before the National Assembly, currently being debated upon and soon some will be passed into laws and regulations to govern the cooperatives and coffee sector," said Shinali.

"We are happy with some of the proposed laws by the Ministry to streamline the Cooperatives Movement, where the security of the shares of contributors are going to be secured," he added.

Likuyani MP Innocent Mugabe lauded the move to streamline and safeguard the operations of the Cooperative Movement that will go a long way in ensuring farmers fully embrace coffee farming without fear of the security of their contributions.

"This is an economic revolution for our people who have for a long time over relied on maize and sugarcane farming but right now, with the efforts to support and revive the coffee sector by streamlining the cooperatives, our people are going to venture into the coffee farming that is going to change their fortunes and boost the economy of this region," said Mugabe.