By Stephen Makabila
Sacco Societies Regulatory Authority (SASRA) has embarked on a raft of measures aimed at improving services to Saccos, members and general public.
Topping the new business initiatives being rolled out by the sector regulator to help it ensure satisfaction levels of its stakeholders are well managed is an online complaints portal.
The portal will allow SASRA to view complaint details, share information with the aggrieved Saccos, confirm resolutions and access decisions on complaints.
Acting Chief Executive Officer, John Mwaka, said the Authority was constantly looking at ways in which it could make its services as efficient as possible and that the portal was one of the key innovations it was making to achieve the goal.
SASRA Chairman, Joseph ole Lenku (pictured) had in July during the Ushirika Day 2016 Awards pledged to ensure the Authority offers better services during his tenure .SASRA is a statutory state corporation established under the Sacco Societies Act, charged with the role of regulating, licensing and supervising deposit taking Sacco Societies (popularly known as Front Office Service Activity or FOSA) in the country.
Establishment of SASRA, which falls within the Government reform programme in the financial sector, had the objectives of protecting the interests of Sacco members, ensuring there is confidence among the public towards Sacco sector and spurring the country’s economic growth through mobilization of domestic savings.
Kenya National Union of Co-operative Staff (KNUCS) Secretary General cum Chief Executive Officer, Oloo Ageka said the new move by SASRA was a step in the right direction.
“That is where we should have been long time ago. However, it is good SASRA has now done it because we have to move with technology to ease the way we deal with our problems,” he told Sacco Review.
Ageka noted that SASRA should ensure those Saccos that violate the law should be punished to ensure safety of billions of shillings in savings by Kenyans in the Sacco sector.
In the latest innovation by SASRA, the public and Sacco members will be able to manage their complaints through the portal, enabling them to keep track of what stage the complaint is at.
The portal will also help SASRA improve its data reporting and analysis while reducing the number of cases that may be due to miscommunication or non-adherence to business processes by Saccos.
The portal is expected to benefit the general public, Sacco members and Saccos, ultimately making life easier for everyone involved in the complaint process.
The portal can be accessed through SASRA’s complaints section on its website.
