Katakwi gets revised Emyooga seed capital initiative

Vice-President Jessica Alupo has launched the new pilot initiative aimed at giving out material items as seed capital to beneficiaries of Emyooga savings and credit cooperative societies (SACCOs) in Katakwi district.

Since the Presidential Initiative on Wealth and Job Creation (Emyooga) was launched in August 2019, it has been disbursing the seed capital only in the form of cash with Katakwi alone receiving so far shillings 2.2 billion for 54 SACCOs in the district.

Emyooga is part of the broad government strategy targeting to transform homesteads from subsistence to market-oriented production with the overall objective of promoting job creation and improving household incomes.

However, the Microfinance Support Centre (MSC) together with Alupo have launched the disbursement of shillings 40 million seed capital in the form of bodabodas to Toroma and Ngariam county bodaboda riders' Emyooga SACCOs.

Toroma and Ngariam Emyooga SACCOs each received four boda boda motorcycles worth shillings 40 million as additional seed capital after they first received the disbursement of shillings 30 million each.

Change of strategy

Joseph Baraza, who was representing the MSC executive director, said the approach was changed a bit after realising that many members of bodaboda SACCOs could not manage to purchase motorcycles when they split the money to share in terms of credit.

Other members want to run away after receiving the seed capital in terms of money, according to him.

“Imagine, if you gave out shillings 30 million to 1,000 members to share in the SACCO, would the money be enough to purchase a boda boda motorcycle?" he said.

Baraza added: “We have changed the approach a little bit because we want the money to be more useful to them other than just splitting it".

He is hopeful that the new approach being tried out in Katakwi will be replicated in other districts with the guidance of senior government officials if it does very well.

Before giving out the new Bajaj motorcycles to the SACCOs, the capacity of the members was improved so that they join and learn to save for the improvement of their families.

“We have released additional seed capital of four motorcycles worth shillings 20 million as one way of revitalising Ngariam County bodaboda rider’s Emyooga SACCO besides training you members to strengthen and revitalise your co-operative,” he said.

Following the request of bodaboda riders, the MSC officials pledged to support the SACCOs by conducting audits, opening and equipping offices for them among others.

Katakwi  LC5 chairperson Geoffrey Omolo asked the leaders of the SACCOs to be honest and reminded the riders to join, own the co-operatives and promote the spirit of saving.

Alupo noted that some Government programmes performed dismally in Katakwi due to the Karamojong cattle rustlers, floods, drought and rebel activity but that she was grateful that some of these circumstances have been addressed.

“Most SACCOs became dormant because of these circumstances. Let MSC streamline all these SACCOs so that Katakwi becomes a model district. When these SACCOs are rectified, 33 per cent of people outside the money economy will join income status,” she said.

She urged the security to recover and arraign before the courts of law any Police officers conniving with thieves to steal bodaboda motorcycles.

District commercial officer Toddy Patrick admitted that some of the accounts of bodaboda riders are dormant because they had a poor saving culture.

Alupo commended MSC for streamlining the boda boda SACCOs by providing members with knowledge and motorcycles which will improve their family income.

She said they lobbied for the training of bodaboda riders following their outcry that they lacked knowledge of Emyooga.

Usalama Brigade commander in Teso Col. Juddy Rukubya assured the locals that insecurity caused by the Karamojong warriors is over but warned residents against stealing their own animals. 

Following the outcry of bodaboda riders that 18 motorcycles have so far been stolen from them, East Kyoga region traffic officer Mathias Okwir Mulumba, who sensitised the riders about traffic rules, pledged to deal with Police officers who connive with thieves to rob motorcycles.

Alupo donated a motorcycle to each LC1 chairperson of Toroma town council and Katakwi town council to help them mobilise the residents on government programmes.

Amos Ongolibai, the chairperson of Ngariam boda Boda Emyooga SACCO commended the Alupo for lobbying MSC to come and educate them saying, they will now manage the SACCOs well.