KAMPALA, June 13, 2024 – Representatives from government, cooperatives, the private sector, clients, and the media were among several others who attended theCooperator Breakfast Meeting held recently at Piato Restaurant in Kampala.
The Cooperator magazine is published monthly by theCooperator Media, a unit of the Uhuru Institute for Social Development [TUI]. TUI works for the growth of the cooperative movement in Uganda.
Welcoming the guests to the event, TUI’s CEO Leonard Okello said theCooperator which is a print and online media channel offers uncensored, balanced, and accurate business and cooperative community news, features, analysis, and opinions.
He said the magazine is tailored to inform, educate, and foster public policy dialogue towards inclusive, people-centered cooperative-driven socio-economic development.
Okello said the magazine produces content from Uganda, East Africa, Africa, and the rest of the world on subjects such as cooperatives, technology, environment, infrastructure, banking and finance, agriculture, energy, education, technology, and health, among others, with a cooperative lens.
He emphasised the importance of organising the theCooperator breakfast meeting. “As a people-centered media service provider, dialogue and networking are key to informing our practice and enhancing partnership value,” he said.
One of the aims of the meeting, he said, was to get feedback to theCooperator team so as to enhance value proposition. The other aim was to provide a platform for networking and sharing ideas with key stakeholders from various sectors.
Okello said because of their unique nature, cooperatives in Uganda and the rest of the world are better placed to fight poverty and transform societies, especially at the time when government has launched programmes like the Parish Development Model [PDM], and others like Emyooga aimed at transforming communities through production, given that 15 million Ugandans are said to belong to the cooperative movement.
On his part, Dr Yusufu Sserunkuma, a media columnist, gave a keynote address on “The Role of Niche Media in Promoting Inclusive Socio-Economic Development”, calling upon cooperatives to be self-reliant instead of looking for sponsorship from government and, donors, adding that cooperatives by their nature are supposed to generate their own capital, and prosper as they help members to generate wealth.
For instance, he said sugarcane farmers in Busoga can raise their own capital to set up sugar mills, instead of selling their cane cheaply to the millers.
He said during the 1990s, African governments were forced by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund [IMF] to collapse farmer cooperatives, trade unions, privatise farmer’s banks, and end free extension services to farmers. He said the coops had been the bedrock of the success of Ugandans.
During the meeting, different participants spoke of how theCooperator can best serve its clientele by tapping into new communication technologies including the use of social media like TikTok, X, Facebook, use of videos, and others.
Eng. Danstan Kisuule, TUI Board Chairman who was the Chief Guest at the event appreciated participants who contributed ideas on how theCooperator can improve its content, and boost its revenue base, among which were ideas such as advertising theCooperator on radio and TV stations.
He said ideas generated from the meeting would be used to come up with theCooperator new business strategy for theCooperator, and commended those who attended the meeting and gave their views about the publication.
On his part, Methods Mureebe, CEO Parliamentary SACCO appreciated the important role theCooperator plays in advocating for the betterment of the cooperative movement in Uganda, although urged editors to use the English understood by the common man, adding that the publication carries good stories that are informative, educative to the extent that someone who understands the value of knowledge cannot just tear it.
Participants at the meeting agreed that the hard economic times Uganda and the rest of the world are facing have impacted on the copy sales of news publications, although they expressed hope that as Ugandans get educated, and get employed some will keep buying both the newspapers, and magazines alongside paying for other needs such as food, medicines, and others.
However, the participants at the meeting also agreed that a poor reading culture exists in the country, which should alert the media to be creative in the way they present their content to the public. theCooperator can be accessed in all regions of the country, displayed on streets, and supermarkets, although copies are delivered to the subscribers.
Buy your copy of thecooperator magazine from one of our country-wide vending points or an e-copy on emag.thecooperator.news
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