Members urged to save more as Kyamuhunga SACCO Kick-starts pre-AGM meetings
BUSHENYI, March 14, 2025 – Ahead of the Annual General Meeting [AGM] scheduled for March 29, 2025, members of Kyamuhunga People’s SACCO [KYAPS] in Rubirizi district have been urged to increase their savings with the SACCO in order to improve their livelihoods.
KYAPS is based in Kyamuhunga Subcounty, Bushenyi district, but operates an additional seven branches across the districts of Ntungamo, Mitooma, Kanungu, Mbarara, Kyenjojo, Kamwenge, and Rubirizi.
This call to members to increase savings was made recently as SACCO members in Rubirizi district held their pre-AGM meeting at Katerera Playground. During the meeting, Rodgers Niwabine, the Sales and Marketing Manager, encouraged members to purchase more shares and increase their savings with the SACCO.
“The purpose of these regional meetings is to update the members on the performance of their SACCO, as well as to provide them with expert training. We have found that there is a significant knowledge gap, with many members not fully understanding the benefits of being part of a SACCO,” he explained.
According to Niwabine, the ongoing pre-AGM meetings aim to motivate members and select delegates to represent them at the upcoming AGM. The best savers and shareholders will be rewarded with prizes such as goats, cows, and mattresses, among other items, to encourage further improvement in savings and shareholding.
He also warned members against the practice of multiple borrowing, stating that it has negatively impacted the SACCO’s loan recovery performance.
“We have encountered numerous challenges while managing the SACCO, but one of the most prevalent issues is multiple borrowing. Instead of borrowing from a single SACCO, some members take out loans from multiple SACCOs, often using the same collateral. This makes it difficult for us to recover those loans,” Niwabine explained.
Judith Mugisha, the Vice Chairperson of the KYAPS Board of Directors, revealed that the SACCO has invested in a social audit to assist members in establishing enterprises such as piggery, poultry, coffee farming, tree planting, beekeeping, fish farming, and providing loans for school fees.
“We have 17 regions, and we continuously update the members on how their SACCO is performing. Kyamuhunga People’s SACCO is the fourth largest SACCO in Uganda. We also focus on educating members on saving, borrowing, and managing their finances so they can repay their loans effectively,” she said.
Mugisha also noted that KYAPS generated dividends of 1.9 billion shillings in 2024, slightly lower than the 2 billion shillings earned the previous year.
Alfred Kukunda, KYAPS Branch Manager at Katerera, thanked the board and management for their contribution to the community by providing financial literacy training to members and supporting education schemes for vulnerable individuals in the districts. To date, over 18 students have benefited from these programmes.
She also encouraged the youth and women in Rubirizi District to leverage the SACCO’s services to improve their household incomes.
In an effort to improve liquidity, Kukunda announced that management plans to increase the interest rates on fixed deposits, which will help protect the SACCO from relying on external borrowing.
As of now, the Katerera branch has a total of 7,262 members, with total savings amounting to Shs 1.17bln, a loan portfolio of Shs 3.83 billion, and share capital of Shs 1.47bln. The loan portfolio risk stands at 4.9 percent.
“This year, we aim to distribute dividends to our members, with each member receiving Shs 1,700 per share. From this amount, Shs 500 will be deducted to increase their shareholding,” Kukunda added.
Janet Tushabe, Assistant Commercial Officer for Rubirizi District, commended KYAPS for its role in combating poverty among its members.
“I encourage the members of KYAPS to embrace the spirit of saving. Increase your share capital, as this is what helps to boost the loans that members take,” Tushabe advised.
Background
Kyamuhunga People’s Savings and Credit Development Association Limited initially started as a company limited by shares, later changing its legal status to a cooperative society in 2004 under registration number 7053.
The cooperative began with 15 members and Shs 3 million but has since grown to a membership of 52,666. It now has share capital of Shs 9.75bln, total savings of Shs 13.77bln, and a loan portfolio of Shs 39.39bln, generating a net surplus of Shs 1.98bln. The SACCO employs 120 staff members.
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