GULU CITY, January 31, 2026 — The Walimu Cooperative Union [WCU] says it has disbursed a total of Shs 480 million to government teachers in the Acholi Subregion since 2022.
Francis Otema, the Northern Regional Manager of the teachers’ union, told theCooperator News in a recent interview that the loans, issued to more than 300 teachers at an annual interest rate of 15 percent, were intended to support personal development.
Otema explained that the personal development loan enables teachers to engage in income-generating activities to support themselves and their families.
“Our main objective is to improve the economic stability of teachers. Once you improve a teacher’s economic stability, you ultimately improve educational performance, because teachers will have adequate time to be in class,” Otema said.
WCU, which has branches across the country, was established after the government advanced a revolving grant of Shs 25 billion to teachers following their demand for a pay rise through their umbrella body, the Uganda National Teachers’ Union [UNATU].
The northern region, which includes Lango and Acholi, initially had 23 Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisations [SACCOs]. However, Otema said that the majority of these SACCOs are no longer active.
“In Gulu, out of the six SACCOs that were formed, only one—Kasubi Army SACCO—has remained functional. Ironically, it received the least amount of money, Shs 60 million, while others received more than Shs 200 million but are no longer operational,” Otema said.
He explained that most of the SACCOs were established solely to access government funds and lacked the capacity to manage them effectively.
“Most of the SACCOs were formed just to receive money from the government. They did not know how to use it and borrowed for direct consumption,” he said.
Otema added that the cooperative is now working with the executives of these SACCOs to help revive their operations.
“Many of these SACCOs have not held Annual General Meetings [AGMs] for a long time, and in some cases their executives have since retired,” he said.
In Uganda, AGMs for registered cooperatives are mandatory, supreme, and regulated by the Cooperative Societies Act [Cap 112] and the Cooperative Societies Regulations, 1992. The AGM is the highest decision-making body, where members review the cooperative’s performance, elect leaders, and set policies.
Otema further revealed that WCU has this year introduced an agricultural loan to support government schools in making long-term farming investments such as tree planting and food production, aimed at reducing the cost of feeding learners.
“There are boarding schools with as much as 300 acres of land, yet they still struggle to feed learners. Starting in February, when schools reopen, we want to support them with tractors so they can grow their own food. If a school produces its own maize and beans, it will significantly reduce feeding costs,” he said, adding that the initiative currently targets only government schools.
Meanwhile, Dolly Laker, the Acholi Subregion Coordinator for WCU, urged teachers to join the union to avoid exploitation by microfinance institutions.
“Teachers should return to the union instead of going to microfinance institutions that overcharge them. You may find a teacher borrows Shs 3 million and is tied to repayments for ten years, eventually paying back nearly triple the amount borrowed,” Laker noted.
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