Samuel Amanyire
Kasese Municipality Restaurant Owners Emyooga SACCO has now ventured into Agricultural value-addition.
The SACCO with a total number of 600 members started with hotel services that has now grown their capital from 50 million shillings to 130 million pushing them to delve to a maize flour milling project.
Zulufah Watya a member of the Kasese Restaurant owners Sacco, testifies that they started with a seed Capital of 50 million shillings which they equally shared and tusked themselves to do routine saving until they started earning interests hence an accumulative of 200 million.
“We first got 30 million then later more 20 and it became 50 million shillings in total then we gave it to our members ad encouraged them to always save.” Zulufah said.
She added that because of maximizing more profits, they decided to spread wings and venture in other projects thus starting up a maize flour milling business although encountering some a few challenges mainly inadequate capital.
“We thank President Museveni for this excellent program but request him to adds more loan funding so that we grow the business bigger.” She said
“Apparently we supply Kasese town only because of lacking enough funds to buy more maize, transport the maize flour to various places and buy other equipment.” She added.
Grace Asaba the Chairperson Kasese hotel owners Sacco said at the moment they are meeting high costs to pay off the machine owner whom they hire to mil the maize into flour but also facing other expenses like electricity and branding of packing sacks which all need much funding.
“If we had our own machine, we would be benefiting much.” Asaba said.
She however said that the maize flour milling project has enable them to solicit allot of profits as well as earning them daily income
“Remember our main enterprise is hotel service. So nowadays we no longer buy the maize flour we use to prepare posho in our hotels from other deals but our own project.” She said
“And by the end of the week or two we earn profits of over 450,000 after meeting all the expenses.” She added.
Commercial officer speaks out.
Godfrey Bwambale the commercial officer Kasese Municipality applauded Kasese municipality Restaurant owners Emyooga Sacco for living to the expectation of the initiative by effectively using the funds to the level of growing their capital to over 130 million shillings.
“Out of the 20 Emyoga Saccos, they are a living example to the rest.” Godfrey said.
He however listed a number of emyooga SACCOs categories that are not performing well including the youths, performing artists, fishermen and boda boda riders adding that they have waged a number of sensitization programs to have them get to the truck of effective usage of the funds.
RDC speaks out.
Joe Walusimbi the RDC Kasese district appealed to some beneficiaries across the entire country that have not yet responded to the recovery of the funds to quickly consent with the set emyooga guidelines should they want to benefit on the forthcoming government programs.
“First priorities always go to those who have performed very well in previous programs.” Walusimbi said.
The Presidential Initiative on Wealth and Job creation (Emyooga) was launched in August 2019 as part of the broad government strategy targeting to transform 68% of homesteads from subsistence to market-oriented production with the overall objective of promoting job creation and improving household incomes.
However most Ugandans miss used the funds in the name of an appreciation for voting the ruling government hence maintaining themselves in bounds of poverty as the few who used the funds wisely are enjoying various outcomes.
