SACCOs in Lira struggling to recover Emyooga funds

Lira, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Lira district is struggling to recover funds that were disbursed under the Emyooga program.

Through Emyooga, the government sought to support 18 categories of associations, namely: boda bodas, women entrepreneurs, welders, taxi operators, fishermen, journalists, veterans, performing artists, and elected leaders among others.

Both Lira district and city registered 840 associations but only 386 with 8,881 members, received funding to the tune  of over 2.5 Billion Shillings.

Each 30 member group received 30 million Uganda shillings to be invested and later paid back at a 3 percent interest rate.

Mary Mukamanzi, the chairperson Lira Salon SACCO says recovering the funds has proved a challenge. She explains that some members are failing to pay back the funds while others claim they did not receive the funds.

According to Mukamanzi, some of their members resort to attacking the officials who go to recover the money because they do not want to pay back the funds.

Aisha Bintabdu, the chairperson of Lira Municipal PWD SACCO said most members under their associations struggled to maintain their businesses because they are physically challenged and were cheated.

Tom Onyuti, the Secretary of Publicity for Lira Fishermen SACCO says that the lack of sensitization of members and uncoordinated messages about the intentions of the program is to blame for the low recovery rate.

Santos Olade, the Lira District Acting Commercial Officer admits that only a few people were trained before the program was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Olade acknowledged that youth and PWD groups have been non-functional even after receiving the money.

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