Biashara Sacco is seeking partners to empower reformed drugs and alcohol addicts, chairman Kamau Njamuku has said.
Njamuku on Sunday said the partners should be in a position to rehabilitate the alcoholics and organise them while the Sacco will facilitate them to start income generating activities.
The empowerment will be through training on financial literacy and some capital to start income generating activities through its 'Unlock Your Potential' programme.
Njamuku spoke during the Sacco’s 11th annual thanksgiving ceremony at St Charles Lwanga Catholic church in Nyeri town.
Last year, the chairman said the Sacco had taken 60 alcoholics in groups of ten but most of them relapsed.
The Sacco had taken advantage of the closure of bars following the confirmation of the first cases of Covid-19 in 2020 to empower alcoholics.
“We realised that the youth, men and women had great potential because they were earlier carpenters and masons before they indulged in alcohol,” Njamuku said.
However, only a few were able to change while majority went back to drinking even after being given some money to start income generating activities.
Njamuku said when they started relapsing, the Sacco organised prayers and sought services of a mentor but that too did not work.
The Sacco had to write off the loans.
However, he said, the Sacco is still willing to assist them if there are partners who can help organise them in groups and have them develop good proposals.
"As Biashara Sacco, we wish to give assurance that if there is any person or organisation with such people who need help and they are serious people, they can come to us in groups of ten, then we can assist them,” the chairman said.
Groups, he said, will help them monitor each other.
Njamuku said the Sacco has many programmes under its Social Corporate Responsibility.
The Sacco donated assorted foodstuffs, pampers, sanitary towels, soap, tissue papers, sandals and clothes to 14 children’s homes from various counties, a home for the elderly and 500 needy families all worth Sh1.05 million for Christmas.
Biashara also spent Sh560,000 in a school feeding programme and donated 50 plastic chairs to the church as part of its CSR.
The Sacco also started a programme dubbed student’s mentorship which involves mentoring Form 4 leavers from needy families.
The idea is to mentor them for six months as they waited to join university and at least earn a stipend through the programme.
However, those recruited started giving excuses and opted out of the programme.
Though the Sacco needed about three in each of its eleven branches, they only have less than ten in total.
However, the chairman said the programme will be revived in January and will be advertised in all the branches.
About 120 students benefited from the students mentorship programme.
Njamuku said despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the Sacco which has eleven branches, two satellites and about 200 agencies did not experience delays in salaries in 2020.
It gave dividends and interests on deposits of 18 per cent and 12 per cent respectively just like in the previous year.
“Our membership has grown to 160,000 currently, both full and associate membership. We gave out Sh2.1 billion loans this year while our share capital has grown to Sh2.5 billion from Sh600 million in 2006 when the Sacco started,” he said.
The Sacco’s CEO Rose Kimaru said the Sacco has seen its staff grow from four to more than 200.
(Edited by Bilha Makokha)