KAMPALA, July 3, 2026 — Uganda’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives [MTIC] has tasked the Walimu Cooperative Union with reviving all dormant teachers’ Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisations [SACCOs] across the country in order to enhance their social impact on teachers’ livelihoods.
While inaugurating the new Board of Directors for the teachers’ union, the Commissioner for Cooperative Policy and Development at the Ministry, Robert Bariyo Barigye, said over 75 per cent of teachers’ SACCOs across the country are dormant, despite initially receiving government funding to support members.
He added that the challenge of dormant SACCOs has contributed to the union’s failure to recover outstanding loans issued to teachers, totalling Shs 11 billion, noting that the union’s management must strengthen supervision and governance.
“You should strengthen supervision, improve governance, and ensure the recovery of outstanding funds lost through poorly managed SACCO lending,” Barigye said at the union’s headquarters in Kampala, days ago.
Barigye further advised that efforts to revive dormant entities across the country should form part of a broader strategy to recover defaulted loans from members, giving the union a new lease of life to improve teachers’ livelihoods.
The Commissioner said MTIC will give the union until March 31, 2027 to recover at least 80 per cent of the loan portfolio and ensure that all dormant SACCOs are reactivated by the new leadership.
Available data indicates that only 39 teachers’ SACCOs are active out of the 385 registered under the Walimu Cooperative Union nationwide.
Through various agencies, government has so far injected Shs 27 billion into the Walimu Cooperative Union. However, the process has been marred by non-loan repayment, and disagreements, which has weakened the union’s ability to promote financial inclusion among teachers.
Barigye urged the new board to act swiftly to improve governance and recover outstanding funds.
The new Board Chairperson, Steven Olinga, pledged to restore confidence in the union.
“We accept this challenge with full commitment. Our priority will be to restore trust among teachers, revive dormant SACCOs, and ensure that public funds injected into the sector deliver value to members,” Olinga said.
The union’s General Manager, Caroline Atai, expressed optimism about the new board, saying it is expected to deliver measurable results by strengthening governance and improving operational efficiency.
“We expect the board to restore the SACCO’s credibility by reviving inactive societies, strengthening technology-driven financial systems, and putting in place robust measures to minimise future loan defaults,” Atai said.
Recovery of defaulted loans and the revival of dormant SACCOs are seen as critical steps towards rebuilding the Walimu Teachers’ Union, which has been affected by governance challenges, corruption, and a poor loan repayment culture among members.
The performance of the new board will be measured not only by the amount of money recovered, but also by the number of dormant SACCOs revived and the impact on teachers’ social welfare across the country.
https://thecooperator.news/teacher-s-saccos-directed-to-prepare-for-walimu-union-agm/
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