This archive report was first published on 23 June 2021.
June 23, 2021 - Small traders in Othaya, Nyeri County have a new savings option after the registration of Nyeri South Traders Sacco.
The Sacco, which started as a welfare group for mechanics and small traders from Othaya constituency, has grown to become a registered Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisation (Sacco).
According to Joseph Wanjohi, the Sacco's chairman, the entity was initially advised to register as a Sacco after it grew beyond its welfare group status.
“Many mechanics were not saving whatever they earned before. We had to convince them to start saving, pool the resources together, borrow the money and use it to expand their work,” Wanjohi said.
The Sacco aims to provide loans to its members to enable them expand their businesses. Speaking during their recent Annual General Meeting (AGM), Wanjohi reported that the Sacco membership had grown from 51 to 86 members, while savings had grown from Sh2.7 million in 2019 to Sh4 million in 2020.
Laikipia Governor Nderitu Muriithi, who was the chief guest at the AGM, said Saccos are key financial institutions in Kenya, holding 25% of domestic savings.
He added that the county government has engaged Saccos as channels of the county’s economic stimulus, allowing them to access resources from the county’s cooperative revolving fund at a low interest rate.
