By Roy Hezron
The Co-operative Sector Baseline Survey report released recently revealed that Nairobi County has the highest number of dormant co-operative societies in the country.
A total of 5,723 co-operatives were found to be dormant with Nairobi having1,459, while Mombasa and Kisumu had 425 and 417 dormant co-operatives.
The counties with the least number of dormant co-operatives were Garissa (12), Isiolo (13), Turkana (13), Makueni (14), and Kirinyaga (16).
But, the same study also shows that Nairobi has the highest number of active societies and those whose licenses were cancelled.
The survey carried out from February last year, targeted all registered active co-operative societies in the country which were audited as at the end of December 2018.
It revealed that there were 23,275 registered co-operatives in the country by February 2018 since the date the first co-operative one was registered in 1908.
However, only 8,814 co-operatives which translate to 60.15 per cent were still active out of which 3,146 are in Nairobi County.
Kiambu County has the second highest number with 507 active co-operatives followed by Nakuru, Nandi and Meru with 342,288 and 223 co-operatives respectively.
Other counties which followed with the highest number of active co-operatives were Mombasa with 213 co-operatives, Kitui with 202 and Bungoma with 203 co-operatives.
Counties which had 100 to 200 active co-operatives include Narok (186), Trans-Nzoia (165), Uasin Gishu (150), Laikipia (175), Kajiado (150), Kericho (181), Bomet (138), Kisumu (110) and Kisii (148).
Those which had below 100 co-operatives were Kwale (73), Mandera (90), Marsabit (42), Isiolo (33), Tharaka-Nithi (88), Embu (85), West Pokot (56), Baringo (90), Vihiga (49), Busia (66), Homabay (90), Migori (90) and Nyamira (58).
The counties that had the least number of active co-operatives were Lamu (17), Samburu and Kakamega which had 21 active co-operatives each.
Others are Garissa 25, Siaya 27, Elgeiyo Marakwet 29, while Tana River, Turkana and Wajir had 31, 35 and 40 active co-operatives.
Licenses of 117 co-operatives were cancelled, again the majority of them based in Nairobi with 34, while Nyeri had 30 co-operatives cancelled.
Other cancellations were made in Embu which had 12, Nakuru two, same to Nyandarua and Elgeiyo-Marakwet, while Uasin Gishu and Migori had one each.
Another 8,621cooperatives could not be classified in either active, dormant or cancelled categories because they did not have requisite details such as certificate number of registration, county code, the County name or were registered but never commenced operations.
The baseline survey was undertaken to determine the contribution of the co-operative sector to the country’s both economic and social cultural contributions.
