MASINDI – The Microfinance Support Centre [MSC], a government agency responsible for Emyooga programme has trained Masindi district Emyooga SACCO leaders on financial literacy and mindset change.
The leaders were also trained on enterprise selection, resource mobilisation, basic bookkeeping, governance, formation, and operation of SACCOs among others.
The officials from UMSC and other facilitators conducted a two-day training of the leaders at the constituency level in all the counties of Masindi district.
Speaking to theCooperator at Masindi municipality headquarters on Tuesday, Emmanuel Twinomuhwezi, the Zonal Manager Hoima, explained that it’s a nationwide exercise aimed at refreshing the minds of the beneficiaries and also equipping the beneficiaries with core basic management and leadership skills of the SACCOs.
“We also want these people to understand that this was not free money but money to help them improve on their economic status,” Twinomuhwezi said.
He added that what came out as the main challenge was the operational funds to run the SACCOs.
The members who turned up for the training at Masindi municipality noted that they are getting challenges in recovering the money more especially from people who were adamant.
Some of the challenges which were pointed out include the poor mindset towards the program, COVID-19 effects, climate change conditions which affected members involved in agriculture, the money being too little for the members among others.
Masindi municipality got Shs 559 million as seed capital.
According to records from Masindi Municipality, 18 SACCOs were formed from 453 associations in the entire municipality and so far over Shs 257 million has been saved by different SACCOs and over Shs 719 million has been disbursed to beneficiaries while over Shs 57 million has been recovered from different SACCOs.
Records from Masindi district indicate it received Shs 1.68 billion and more than Shs 1.48 billion that was disbursed to 54 Savings and Credit Cooperative Organizations [SACCOs] which were formed in the entire district to benefit from the program.
They further indicate that more than Shs 536 million has been realized as savings from the 54 SACCOs and more than Shs 130 million has been recovered from the beneficiaries.
Emyooga is a Presidential Cluster Initiative on Wealth and Job Creation which was introduced in 2019.
In Bunyoro sub-region, it was officially launched in July 2020 by the State Minister for Microfinance, Haruna Kyeyune Kasolo in Masindi district.
The 19 clusters selected to benefit from the program include Boda-boda riders, salon owners, carpenters and taxi operators, welders, market vendors, journalists, performing artists, mechanics among others.
Under the project, each enterprise group with a minimum of 30 members is supposed to receive up to Shs 30m in funding, which is accessed as a revolving fund by members to boost their respective income-generating ventures.
https://thecooperator.news/masindi-teachers-sacco-share-capital-increase-to-shs56m/
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