By Staff Reporter
Savings and Credit Cooperatives Societies (Saccos) have been advised to organize themselves to benefit from the government’s blue print projects.
Co-operative Commissioner Mary Mungai identified the Government’s plan to construct one million housing units as one where the players can actively participate.
Investing in affordable housing units is part of the government’s Big Four Agenda recently unveiled by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
On their part, Saccos have been tasked to bridge the housing shortage in the country, which is estimated to stand at 250,000 annually by constructing a quarter of the target (250,000) units.
Majority of the societies have housing cooperatives with the commissioner urging them to take the advantage of the government’s plan and apply for opportunities to construct the units.
“The government will look for partners to construct the houses. I urge housing cooperatives to take advantage of this noble initiative,” she noted in Nairobi recently.
With the coming in of devolution, putting up decent and affordable housing units has presented a huge potential for the Sacco sub sector to venture into and realise better returns.
However, a challenge they face is that those who wish to venture into this promising market segment must start a subsidiary arm.
Saccos were majorly started to mobilise savings and offer affordable and timely credit to its members and to go outside the core business, they have to set up a subsidiary investment arm.
In Busia County for example, a good number of the employees live outside the town due to lack of houses.
This is the same scenario for those working with the Baringo County government.
Boresha Sacco CEO Moses Chebor noted that this is a commercially viable market segment for the industry players to venture into.
He however appealed for a clear roadmap to be developed to enable them invest in the fast growing sector in the country.
