By Roy Hezron
The proposed co-operative law will enhance management of co-operatives in the country, the Kenya Society of Professional Co-operators (KSPC) chairperson and Co-operative University of Kenya Deputy Vice Chancellor Prof. Esther Gicheru have said.
Addressing Co-operative leaders in the larger Eastern region at Embu Hall in Embu County, Prof. Gicheru noted the Co-operative movement in the country must be run professionally.
She informed the leaders that all those who will be involved in the management of co-operatives must be members of good repute, a key reason that informed the formation of KSPC.
Among the other things the newly proposed National Co-operative Bill, 2021, which is set to repeal the current Co-operative Societies Act of 1997, envisages dividing the Co-operatives into a four-tier structure of primary, secondary, co-operative federations and apex co-operatives. It also outlines strict rules on protection of cooperative identity and mandatory usage of names in the cooperative movement.
The meeting brought together all Cooperative leaders from all types of co-operatives in the larger Eastern region comprising Machakos, Kitui, Embu, Tharaka Nithi and Meru counties. It was graced by government officers from the five counties.
Prof. Gicheru took the leaders through the journey that culminated in the registration of KSPC as a professional organisation. KSPC acting Chief Executive Officer Mr. Symon Mburia presented the objectives, mandate, membership benefits and the KSPC programme for the year 2022.
Embu district Coffee Union chairman Mr John Maruku, on behalf of the leaders, and appreciated KSPC, saying that for many years the Co-operative movement has been misused by service providers who presented themselves as professionals when their knowledge of cooperatives was limited.
He decried that the same characters were responsible for the bad image of the sector, branding cooperatives as corrupt whenever they missed consultancy business opportunities.
Embu Deputy County Director for Cooperatives Mrs. Anid Kariuki, KSPC vice chairperson Ms Teresa Mutegi, and KSPC director Dr. Moses Gweyi were among those who addressed the meeting.
KSPC was launched in October 2018 and immediately thereafter, it embarked on a member recruitment drive and held its first Annual General Meeting (AGM) in November that year.
The organization is led by a nine member council under the leadership of Prof. Esther Gicheru as the chairperson, with Mrs Teresa Mutegi as Vice Chair, Richard Nyakenogo as treasurer and Steven Otieno being the secretary.
Other members supporting the designations include Dr. Nelson Kuria, Dr. Moses Gweyi, Mr. Vincent Marangu, Mr. Francis Kamande, and Mr. Richard Nyaanga.
The professional organization was registered in the year 2017 under the Registrar of Societies (not by the Commissioner for Co-operatives) as a non-profit making member-based organization.
There will be another co-operative leaders meeting later in March and early April at Oltukai Lodge in Amboseli National Park. Its purpose is to review and discuss the implementation of regulations for the Draft Bill, where leaders will be allowed to give their views and further develope the regulations.
