KWANIA, June 13, 2024 – Members of Inomo Oil Seed Cooperative Society Limited in Inomo Subcounty Kwania district have launched a Savings and Credit Cooperative Society [SACCO] intending to improve their livelihoods.
Speaking during the launch of the SACCO on Tuesday, Fred Doi, the Chairperson Inomo Oil Seed Cooperative Society says the cooperative has registered tremendous achievement within a very short period.
“Within only one year our membership has grown from 46 to 213. We were able to bulk our produce together and sell at affordable prices. And now with the launch of the SACCO we plan to save money and offer credits to our members at a very small percentage,” he said.
Doi said under the cooperative they intend to invest in large-scale farming. “We thought of coming together under a cooperative focusing on simsim, sunflower, soya beans, and groundnut. Commercial loans are so expensive for the farmers so we want to address the challenge by producing our crops and exporting it and with this we intend to buy tractors and embark on commercial farming,” he said.
Lilly Okello, a resident of Alero in Agwiciri parish and a member of Inomo Oil Seed Cooperative said, “I decided to join the cooperative last year. Within a period of only 12 months, I have benefited a lot. I am able to get quality seeds, bumper harvest and sell my produce at a better price.”
Speaking at the same function, Patrick Bura, Kwania Senior Commercial Officer hailed members of Inomo Cooperative. “At the moment we have only 127 cooperatives in the whole district and most of them are dealing in oil seed crops while very few dealing in grains. The cooperatives are still few and I want to encourage farmers to form or join cooperatives,” he said.
Adding that, “Most people are focusing on village savings and loans associations [VSLAs]. Yes, the VSLAs are a good thing but is not registered unlike cooperatives which also gives a lot of profit compared to the VSLAs.”
Sharon Akullo Atoo, a representative from Uganda National Farmers Federation rallied farmers to form cooperatives to tap the available opportunities.
“The land is already exhausted and has lost its fertility. Even before you buy seeds in the open market you need what we call enterprise selection. That is why it’s important for farmers to be under a cooperative to address some of these key challenges,” she said.
https://thecooperator.news/kwania-farmer-groups-embrace-micro-scale-irrigation-programme/
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