Bunyoro starts regional SACCO

SACCO   BUSINESS

MASINDI - A group of people in Bunyoro on Saturday held the inaugural Annual General Meeting (AGM) for their newly established savings and credit cooperative organization (SACCO). 

The meeting which took place at Masindi Education Hall in Masindi Municipality was presided over by the District Commercial Officer (DCO), Monica Tibemanya. 

Tibemanya issued the SACCO with a temporary certificate on behalf of the Ministry of Trade and Cooperatives. The organization will be issued with a permanent certificate by the ministry after a number of months in operation. 

The SACCO is a product of the Bunyoro Annual Conferences. The annual conferences are organized by Bunyoro Think Tank. 

Members of the Think Tank resolved at the 2018 conference in Masindi to form a regional SACCO.

They put in place an interim committee chaired by Kenneth Nkumiro, a specialist in the cooperatives industry, to spearhead the effort of setting up a regional savings and credit cooperative organization. 

Other members on the task force included Rebecca Baguma (vice-chair), Francis Tumwesige (member), Robert Irumba (secretary) and Pascal Kwesiga (treasurer). 

Under the guidance of the DCO, the SACCO members elected the substantive executive and supervisory committees. They also recruited new members and secured office space for the organization in Masindi town. 

Holding the inaugural AGM and constitution of leadership committees form part of the legal requirements that have to be fulfilled before a SACCO can embark on its operations. 

Tibemanya said the formation of the first indigenous regional SACCO for Bunyoro is a welcome development and encouraged people in Bunyoro to embrace it. 

She added that many other parts of the country have vibrant SACCOs that have not only contributed to the improvement in the wellbeing of the population but promoted the spirit of working together to realise regional economic dreams. 

She expressed hope that Bunyoro SACCO will inculcate in the people of Bunyoro the value of working together. 

Anthony Uzzi, a member of Moyo Community SAACO, who was invited to the meeting to share his experience about savings and credit cooperative institutions, said there is a lot of potentials for Bunyoro SACCO to grow into a vibrant economic union. 

He added that Moyo community savings and credit cooperative organization is among the top five SACCOs in the country, yet Moyo district doesn't have the potential Bunyoro region is endowed with. 

Nkumiro said the executive committee has already developed the work plan and budget for the organization. 

The committee, he added, will undertake a region-wide tour to introduce the SACCO to the local governments and the people.