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Diaspora Matters

Diaspora Matters

Comparing 2005 vs 2025 Opportunities

abantu

Were you fortunate to have been around in 2005? Ok lets rewind the clock and look at the changes that have taken place over the last 2 decades.

In the year 2005 what was the situation?

  1. No Social Media.
  2. No official US Dollars circulation.
  3. No Chinese buses on our highways.
  4. Few ex jap vehicle imports.
  5. No Runners existed.
  6. There were no buses to Beira, Capetown and East London.
  7. Borehole drilling and Solar Products out of reach:
  8. Mukuru did not exist:
  9. A lot of local banks had been closed.
  10. We did not know much about diamonds, Chrome and Lithium
  11. NGOs employed thousands of employees.
  12. No crypto currencies existed.
  13. Smart phones did not exist.
  14. Few Zimbabweans sought medical assistance in India.
  15. There were technically no Zimbabweans learning at Zambian Universities.

What is the situation now? What were the drivers of change?

The Smart Phone ushered in a lot of new opportunities. Social Media is a big chapter which disrupted every facet of life bringing in new opportunities and also risks.

Massive Demographic Changes took place with millions migrating abroad—also bringing tons of opportunities with the strong emergence of money transfer agencies such as Mukuru—new bus routes also created.

Strong China Emergence a global leader disrupting supply chains and global economies. China’s competition drove prices down in energy products, and machinery.

Minerals & Tech: Most Zimbabweans were unaware of the existence of Marange Diamonds. We  not even care about the location of chrome deposits. And this also applies to gold where a lot of new discoveries were in the pipeline.

Climate Change: A series of droughts drove innovations in Agriculture and this also includes borehole drilling, solar irrigation systems etc

Tech| Demographics| China | Minerals | Economy | Climate Change

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Diaspora Matters

The Best Period To Plant Madagascar Lima Beans is Now

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It started with an accidental encounter of 3 wild bean plants in my backyard garden in late November 2023. They were vigorously growing and I reached out to forum agronomists for help—are the beans edible? I asked because they pods had thorns and definitely looked wild.

Emmanuel Dube was the first to respond and said the beans were edible. Tsitsi Mubvakure was the second to confirm edibility and said she had a few of them growing at her backyard in Harare.

An interesting journey followed with seed multiplication and sharing within the forum. The seeds are not available for sale from leading seed houses. So if you want to grow them—you have to start from the bottom—a few plants and multiply them till you have enough for meaningful farming.

Our big space farming trials started in January 2025 and there are a lot of lessons;

  • Constant watering is crucial and often a challenge.
  • Planting early helps develop strong plants—the ideal period is September to December.
  • The December period when rains come—is for upscale.
  • Avoid having the bean plants growing and expanding on the ground—provide enough trellis.
  • Security fence extremely important as the beans are a delicacy for cattle.

How many plants do you need to produce a tonne?

A thousand seeds giving you an average yield of a kg every 3 months is all you need.

However you need to first go through a learning curve of backyard farming and transferring skills to big spaces like plots, farms and rural lands.

  • Do a soil test first and get experts advice.
  • Do not go for too big farming spaces—rather keep it small and slowly upscale. Too big spaces will give you trellis support challenges. As previously mentioned—Trellis support is hard work and it’s not possible to cover an acre in the first cycle. Keep it most 200 sqm or less.
  • Evidence has shown that well watered and manure supported plants can give you 5kgs of beans in 3 months. So it’s about more of quality than quantity.

So let’s give it a try this September and aim to have at least 10 plants and lets grow together. Search around for seeds and you could be fortunate. On ZBIN we distributed many free seeds but this time—if you need some, you have to pay a token fee to support the forum operational costs. You can link up on +263 773 055 063.

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Diaspora Matters

Mistakes ZBIN Did: Not Registering SACCOs for Crowd funding Projects.

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I had an interesting discussion with Zbinite Wilson Wizalamu who is the founder of Centi Centi SACCO which has members in Zimbabwe and South Africa. He is also a board member of The National Association of SACCOs.

The history of Savings and Credit Associations in Zimbabwe was tainted by Housing Cooperatives where many lost funds. So mention Cooperatives—and many will shy away, it is synonymous with fraud and mismanagement.

However there are quite a few which are doing well with the Teachers SACCO having 18,000 members and in 2017 they had a balance sheet valued at US$18 million before currency conversion in 2019.

The Biggest Risk ZBIN Crowd funding Projects Faced.

Capture, Capture and Capture of Projects. Registered as companies or simply roundtables.

Solution=SACCOs

And here is how;

  1. A SACCO needs a minimum of 10 members for registration purposes.
  2. The 10 members will form a (1) management committee, a (2) supervisory committee, a (3) loans committee, and a (4) education committee.
  3. The treasurer has to submit a CV for review and reference purposes.
  4. In addition, the SACCO has to be part of a National Association of SACCOs.
  5. They will be regulated by SACCOs Statutes.
  6. Upon registration—they receive a certificate.

With the above steps—it is almost impossible for a single person to override the systems and everyone and convert a Crowd funding Initiative into a personal property. The corporate governance structure is regulated with statutory reporting and compliance.

A registered company can easily be converted into a personal project. One can use political power to systematically remove every shareholder taking advantage of commercial law illiteracy. Start-up companies vulnerable to takeovers by greedy members.

SACCOs government oversight makes it easier to lodge complaints for review.

Unregistered round tables easy for take overs or the founders disappearing from the scene.

So the message from now is SACCOS, SACCOS, SACCOS and SACCOS.

Kenyan  SACCOS

In Kenya SACCOS hold a combined US$14 Billion in assets or 10%of the GDP.

The benchmark for Zimbabwe should therefore be US$4,5 Billion

A benchmark of 1% means at least $450m but we doubt whether  total assets are worth $20 million.

But as the biggest small business forum in Zimbabwe with 180,000 Active Members, ZBIN has an opportunity to tap into the US$4.5 Billion market provided we have well run SACCOs.

The Jangano and Thuthuvaka Crowdfunding Projects currently hold less than US$20k in funds but have huge potential through laying a solid foundation. Convert into SACCOs in future and the sky is the limit.

Formalize Your Crowdfunding Initiatives

In order to grow and tap into the potential US$4.5 Billion market—ensure you formalize your entities. Yes you don’t have to open up to the public, but lay solid foundations for future upscale and growth.

And if not subscribed to ZBIN—you have an opportunity to be a member of the forum and not be left out.

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Diaspora Matters

Zimbos working on cruise ships face uncertain future

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The recent changes in visas by the American Embassy in Harare has adversely impacted thousands of Zimbabweans working on cruise ships.

Some ships have already notified Zimbabwean employees of termination and recruitment from Zimbabwe has been frozen.

At this juncture, cruise ship job recruitment by American Cruiseships of Zimbabweans has been put on ice.

The Zimbabwe Business Ideas and Network (ZBIN) is obviously concerned as we championed the recruitment of cruise ships staff and even had a chartered plane from Carnival Cruise, landing at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe Airport to pick up recruits back in June 2022.

It is difficult to come up with an accurate estimate of the number of Zimbabweans working on cruise ships, but it is important to factor in,

At least 600 recruited directly from Zimbabwe soil at job fairs held in Harare and Bulawayo by Msc Cruise in 2022 and 2023.

Thousands recruited from Job Fairs in South Africa from 2022 to 2024. Recruitments done in Joburg, Durban and Capetown.

Thousands of Zimbabweans also applied online and offered jobs from Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe.

From our forum ZBIN, we directly gave free advice to at least 1000 of our members who were successful from online applications and recruitments. A good number of them are still on the forum.

The US Embassy Harare Office was quoted by The Independent to have issued at least 2000 visas for cruise ship job applicants in 2023.

But the majority of visa applicants used the US Embassies in Maputo, Pretoria, Mbabane and Windhoek.

Therefore it’s safe to say up to 10,000 Zimbos impacted by the recent US Embassy Visa changes.

Earning an average annual salary of $10,000 per year. This means the country was earning an average of $100 million per year as most salaries were remitted back home.

We do not have the full facts as to why the visa tenures were reduced, but from social media reports; it seems the issue could be resolved.

We would also like to believe there is concern for the adverse impact, with high level attention given to the issue.

From our forum, most of those working on cruise ships are hard working youngsters with some helping families, raising capital for businesses and self improvement projects.

We therefore appeal for help on behalf of every Zimbabwean national, so that they keep their jobs and help the nation.

By default, collectively; they are also our investors. Some are participating in local projects banking funds in Zimbabwe.

We pray for resolution to the visas impasse as anxiety has gripped 10,000 cruise ship members, their families and dependants.

On behalf of ZBIN and Zimbabweans working on cruise ships.

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Diaspora Matters

Thuthvaka Our Second Land Acquisition Crowdfund

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Our first crowdfund to buy land is called Jangano Crowdfund and was formed last year around July and 65 Zbinites mobilized enough funds to buy land—they are almost done.

  • Bank : FBC Amarounds Account
  • Terms: Members contributed $30 per month x 9 months
  • Membership: 65 Members from USA, UK, SA, Namibia, China and Zimbabwe
  • Status: Identified a residential stand to build student hostels and almost a done deal. The project is closed from new entrants.

…………………….

Thuthuvaka Crowdfund.

Formed last month and to follow Jangano Crowdfund footsteps—eyeing land acquisition for commercial purposes.

Bank: ZB Clubs Account

Terms: Members to choose 2 options or both ($30 x 9) and ($50x 9)

Membership: So far 65 Members drawn from USA, UK, SA and Zim

Status: We got a bank account on Friday—15 August with funds deposits expected starting this week. New members welcome provided you are not completely new to ZBIN.

………………………

Where is the benefit?: We are not buying land from urban areas such as Harare where land is expensive—instead targeting small towns and rural councils with high growth potential. Areas with student accommodation deficits, fast developing gold mining areas, new areas with public schools deficits,

Risks?: Working with banks greatly reduce risks—And we witnessed this with Jangano. However currency conversions remain a key risk, and to manage this—our projects are short term. And to identify land for sale and pay deposits.

Spinoff Benefits: This is a lifetime low risks venture—however through solid business relationships built, you can start other projects such as Manufacturing, Savings Clubs or SACCOs as spinoffs. You use verified financial references and have shared land title as surety.

Interested?: If already a subscribed member, this is a benefit and to join the $30 option—it’s a commitment fee of $10, for $30 option its $15. If not subscribed—you subscribe first for $10 per year. Kindly contact on +263773055063.

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Diaspora Matters

Lithium/Gold Mine Claims and Other Minerals for sale in Zimbabwe

gold

We have been engaged by one of our members who is selling gold mine claims and other minerals around Zimbabwe and if interested kindly contact us on Whatsapp +263773055063.

• *Gwanda* | _ Gold Mine_ – 50ha | US$2m

• *Gokwe North* | _Gold Mine_ – 10ha | US$350,000

• *Mashava* | _ Gold Mine_ – 35ha | US$7m

• *Nyanga* | _Gold Mine claims_ – 250ha | US$250,000

• *Nkayi* | _ Gold claims_ – 700ha | $1.6m

• *Kadoma* | _ Gold Mine_ – 224ha | US$10.5m

• *Mt Hampden* | _ Granite Prospect_ – 50ha | US$2.3m

• *Gokwe North* | _ Gold claims_ – 130ha | US$180,000

• *Matabeleland South* | _ Gold Mines_ – 2700ha | US$8m

• *Mt Darwin* | _ Gold Mine_ -110ha | US$5.6m

• *Nkayi* | _ copper claims_ – 733ha | US$900,000

• *Kwekwe* | _ Gold Mine_ – 445ha | US$12m

• *Kwekwe* | _ Gold Mine_ – 750ha | US$4m

• *Masvingo* | _ Gold Mine_ – 55ha | US$3.5m

• *Chegutu* | _Gold claims_ – 190ha | US$700,000

• *Lalapanzi* | Copper – 94ha | US$350,000

• *Kwekwe* | Gold claim – 75ha | US$350,000

• *Kwekwe* | Gold Claim – 66ha | US$330,000

• *Shangani* | Lithium claim – 1292ha | US$1.9m

• *Kwekwe* | Gold & claim – 405ha | US$1.5m

• *Kwekwe* | Gold claim – 817ha | US$3.5m

• *Gwanda* | Lithium claim – 600ha | US$2.5m

• *Gwayi* | Gold,Copper,Nickel – 146ha | US$3.5m

• *Kamativi* | Lithium claim – 450ha | US$1.2m

• *Manicaland* | Molybdenum claim | 4571ha | US$200m

• *Uzumba* | Black Granite – 88ha | US$160,000

• *Uzumba* | Black Granite – 50ha | US$120,000

• *Mt Darwin* | Black Granite – 95.5ha | US$300,000

• *Gweru* | Gold Mine – 40ha | US$1.7m

• *Shurugwi* | Gold Mine – 70ha | US$2m

• *Beitbridge* |

Gypsum & Dolomite claim – 150ha | US$250,000

• *Bikita* | Lithium claim – 87ha | US$430,000

• *Shurugwi* | Boterekwa Gold claim – 260ha | US$800,000

• *Esigodini* | Gold heap leach claim – 150ha | US$850,000

• *Shurugwi* | Gold Claim – 300ha | US$3.5m

• *Mutoko* | Lithium claim – 900ha | US$1.3m

• *Beitbridge* | Iron claim – 150ha | US$400,000

• *Bikita* | Lithium claim – 150ha | JV option 35/65

• *Kadoma* | Gold Mine – 40ha | US$3.9m

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Diaspora Matters

 The Best Credit Scores For Informal Traders in Zimbabwe

credit

Access to finance to the informal sector remains a huge challenge in Zimbabwe and the status quo unlikely to change in the near future. First, the numbers are too huge with the informal sector slowly becoming the Real Economy.

Economic sectors where the informal sector has taken over include the Transport Sector, Gold Deliveries, Retail, Tobacco Farming and the list is long and growing every day.

When it comes to banks lending the informal sector, the challenge becomes how when most have no assets that could be used as surety? Location in some cases is not fixed. The high risks profiles makes it difficult to extend loans to the informal sector.

The good news is that we have come up with an innovation which could be used and we provide a case study below;

In November 2024, 90 members from the forum started a crowdfunding project called Jangano Crowdfund to purchase land. All the members paid $30 for 6 months into an FBC Bank Amounds Account. The FBC Amarounds Account is tailor made for the informal sector—easy to open and run.

  • Now Jangano Crowdfund has a record of performance with FBC Bank Account.
  • Each member’s deposits are captured on a monthly basis—who has been depositing on time and who has been missing deadlines?
  • The bank account also shows who has paid up front.

Members of Jangano Crowdfund are dotted across the country and also includes some from the diaspora such as UK, USA, SA and Mozambique.

Could this record be used as a credit score? Well its too short a period—just 6 months. But over 12 months to 36 months, performance could be used to judge how much each member is able to deposit.

The fact that someone is part of a team(First as a registered member of ZBIN) and secondly as a member of a Crowdfunding and lastly with own deposit performance record. The bank can be able to assess the financial risk of loans up to a certain amount. And the good news is that this applies to diasporans.

Message to informal sector: Yes its convenient to have cash in a cash economy—but try and open bank accounts for your crowdfunding projects. Have a performance record for the projects and individual members. This could become your credit scores in future.

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Diaspora Matters

Shielding Projects from capture

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Project capture is one of the most complicated areas where seasoned experts can struggle with. Capture science is rarely studied and only a few get to feel it through experience. Project capture happens at many boards, projects within companies, and in the open environment in areas such as start-ups and partnerships and community projects.

Where no legal documentation such as constitutions exist—capture is a breeze. Where new projects with no tried and tested systems exist—again capture is like slicing  cheese with a hot knife.

The first mistake most make is to focus on your project and failing to appreciate who could be interested—outside and within and what their plans could be.

Lets share some shield tactics for community owned projects.

Leadership Committee: Some leaders could be founders who may not have gone through elections. If the projects succeeds beyond expectations—there could be resentment and underhand tactics to join the leadership or expel the whole lot with a new capture team coming in. To curb this—have a constitution with limited tenure and elections. This is easy on paper as some could end up clinging on to power and not creating room for others. And this creates resentment and fuel strategies for capture.

Protecting Leadership: A leadership could be doing a sterling job but someone wants to be part of the leadership. Some of the strategies to barge in includes capturing the treasurer especially where cash is involved. Cash goes missing and chaos is automatic. The whole leadership is booted out creating room for new capture team. The treasurer is the easiest link where cash handling takes place. Innocent parties in the leadership in most cases get caught in the crossfire.

Therefore to protect innocent members of the leadership committee—in cases where the whole lot is booted out—the Risks and Management Committee should automatically come in—and this should be captured in the constitution. They do investigations—present to members with recommendations and if fresh elections are required, they do so. This singles out the guilty parties and not the entire leadership.

Still its complex as the new elected committee member could have done enough canvassing and yet guilty of triggering chaos.

Who moves in after chaos—a tricky and complex matter but at all costs move with caution when kicking out the entire committee.

2 Committees to find before capture: Having a leadership committee running solo makes them sitting ducks for capture. Those interested in turfing them out only have one collective target. Push them out using unorthodox tactics—and come in as Rescue Team. But if there is a constitutionally mandated team, this means capturers have 2 stairs to climb. In capture, they often move with speed and using speed to kick out one committee—and the second committee without detection or raising eyebrows–no stroll in the park.

You could reflect on projects you have been part of and reflecting on tricks and games employed by capture teams—there was a second in charge team that was the missing link, Missiles shot straight to one team and it was over.

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Diaspora Matters

Kenya vs Zimbabwe Saccos

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The value of assets held by Kenyan Saccos (Savings and Credit Cooperative Organizations is estimated at US$10 Billion or roughly 10% of the country’s GDP. Applying this to Zimbabwe—the value of Saccos assets should be US$3,5 Billion. But where are the local Saccos?

Can you list the top 10 Saccos in Zimbabwe? Which Sacco has assets above a million dollars? Possibly a few which are under ground—how about those +$10 million?

The target should be a collective $3,5 billion and showing exponential growth. Yes millions of dollars flowing amongst diasporas and locals. But where is the evidence? How many high rise buildings in Harare or Bulawayo are owned by Saccos?

So Zbinites—here is your challenge to lay the foundation for the next generation. In your circles start serious discussions on what Kenyans are doing and steps you are taking to follow in their footsteps.

The 10 Best SACCOs in Kenya

Are you considering investing in or borrowing from a Savings and Credit Cooperative organization? Here’s a run-down of the 15 best performing SACCOs in Kenya.

1. Mwalimu National SACCO

With an asset base of 66.43 Billion shillings, Mwalimu National SACCO ranks among the largest Saccos in Kenya. The Sacco focuses on giving teachers access to affordable financial services. Just like its name ‘Mwalimu”, the Sacco majorly targets teachers of all calibers, from primary to tertiary level. Also included are TSC secretariat members and children or spouses of members who aren’t formally employed.

The Mwalimu National Sacco services include welfare services, business loan products, FOSA and BOSA products. The FOSA (Front Office Services Activities) provides banking services such as loans, salary advances, and instant credits. Business loans offered include asset financing, insurance premium financing, mortgage financing, and collateral-based loans.

Business loans

Besides savings, Mwalimu National Sacco provides welfare services to its members, including risk funds, last expense benefits, and burial benevolent funds. The BOSA (Back Office Services Activities) offers members different loan products against the deposits they’ve made. 

The head office of Mwalimu National Sacco is located at Mwalimu Towers, situated along Mara Road, in Uperrhill, Nairobi. This Sacco was founded in 1974 with just 9 members. Currently, it has 18 branches and over 123,000 members. 

2. Stima SACCO

Stima SACCO started operations in 1974 with a mandate of serving the formerly known East African Power & Lighting Company employees. It has since evolved to be among Kenya’s top saccos thanks to its broad coverage of members from different sectors including corporations, groups and business persons. The Sacco also ranks second in terms of asset base and thus has a high stability ratio.

Stima Sacco has many firsts; it was the first to be licensed by SASRA, the first to induct mobile banking, and the first to launch ATM services. It was also the first to unveil Sharia-compliant product services and the first to issue cheque books. The Sacco offers various services like savings options, investment options, credit facilities, insurance, mortgage, and diaspora services.

Stima Sacco embraces its core values of teamwork, innovation, integrity, and professionalism to fulfill its objectives. The Sacco currently has over 200,000 members which includes both residents and non-residents. Finally, Stima Sacco has 14 branches, and its head offices are at the Stima Sacco Plaza, Mushembi Road, in Parklands, Nairobi.

3. Kenya National Police SACCO

The Kenya National Police Sacco started in 1972 with a total of 690 members and has since grown to host over 73,000 members. This Sacco employs its core values of quality, integrity, teamwork and innovation to dispense its mission of providing members with competitive financial solutions.

Some of the services offered by the Kenya National Police Sacco include credit, savings, loans and investment services. The members who are drawn majorly from the police service enjoy low loan interest rates, interest on deposits, high annual dividends, instant loans, etc. However, the sacco membership isn’t limited to the police service as civil servants and individuals from business communities can join.

As part of its achievements, the Kenya National Police Sacco was recently awarded the “Best Managed Sacco in Kenya” at the Ushirika Gala Awards 2024. The Sacco has 7 branches in Kenya’s major towns, and its head office is at the Kenya Police Sacco Plaza situated along Ngara Road, Nairobi. 

4. Harambee SACCO

Harambee was Kenya’s first president Jomo Kenyatta’s favorite slogan which means “Pooling together.” The history of Harambee Sacco dates back to 1969 when members drawn from the then Office Of the President(OPP) joined to form a merry-go-round. Their vision was to encourage members to have a savings plan to help them access short-term loans.

The need for growth saw the merry-go-round transform into a full sacco-society under the name Harambee DT SACCO Society, which was formed in 1970. Despite its humble beginnings, Harambee Sacco now ranks among Kenya’s best and largest saccos. It boasts an asset base of 38.57 Billion and over 80,000 members.

The sacco’s members come from diverse backgrounds, including civil servants, corporates, groups or chamas, and CBOs (Community Based Organizations). This sacco offers its members different services ranging from savings and loans to investment opportunities. Harambee Sacco has 5 branches, and its head offices are at the Harambee Plaza, Heile Sellasie Avenue, Nairobi. 

5. Tower SACCO

Tower SACCO was formed in 1976 by a group of primary teachers in Ol’Kalou, Nyandarua County. The Sacco’s membership has since expanded to cover the police service, farmers, parastatals, business community, county government employees, etc. It currently has over 250,000 members and a 23.23 billion asset base.

Tower Sacco offers members different financial services, including investment products, loans, savings and insurance. They’ve adopted innovative measures like mobile banking, internet banking, visa-branded ATMS, and Tower Sacco agents to make service delivery easy. Finally, the Sacco has 25 branches, and its head office is at the Tower Sacco Plaza in Ol’Kalou.

6. Afya SACCO

If you’ve ever been to Nairobi, you are probably aware of the iconic green Afya Center Building located along Tom Mboya Street. This building houses the Afya Sacco head office. Afya Sacco was founded in 1971 by a group of 20 people but has since grown to host over 38,000 members. 

The Afya Co-op Sacco Society services include FOSA, investments, land acquisition and loan services. This sacco has embraced technology by introducing E-services like the tender portal, dividends portal, recruitment portal and customer inquiries for better service delivery. 

7. UNAITAS SACCO

This deposit-taking Sacco was registered in 1993 and was then known as Murang’a Tea Growers cooperative society. It comprised a group of like-minded farmers who combined to encourage the spirit of saving and getting loans at affordable rates. 

However, the Sacco later changed its name to Muramati in 2007 hence expanding operations beyond Murang’a and opening doors for other entrepreneurs. Muramati later changed its name to the currently called Unaitas Sacco in 2012 by incorporating members form different sectors and developing client-tailored products.

Unaitas has 31 branches in Kenya’s major towns, and its head office is at the Cardinal Otunga Plaza, Kaunda Street, Nairobi. The services offered by Unaitas include savings, investments, and loans. 

8. Imarisha SACCO

With only 14 branches, Imarisha Sacco has an asset base of 21.78 billion and over 160,000 members. This broad membership is attributed to Imarisha Sacco’s commitment to providing effective yet efficient financial services through accountability, integrity, equity and transparency. The incorporated services include savings, loans, digital banking and diaspora services.

Imarisha Sacco Society opened its doors in 1978 under the name Kipsigis Teachers Sacco, which was formed by a group of 100 teachers. In 2014, the Sacco rebranded to its current name, Imarisha Sacco and began to accept non-teaching members. The Sacco has 14 branches, and its headquarters are at the Imarisha Sacco Building, in Kericho town.

9. United Nations SACCO

The United Nations Sacco was formed in 1975 with only 131 members and aimed to provide financial services to UN (United Nations) employees. Nonetheless, the Sacco has since expanded its membership to include United Nations-related agencies, staff and selected international organizations.

This Sacco has since grown to be home to over 6900 members and an asset base of 18.21 billion. The United Nations Sacco services include mobile banking, savings, money transfer, safe custody, loans and investments. Its offices are located at the UN SACCO Building, United Nations Complex, Gigiri, and Nairobi. 

10. Ukulima SACCO

Ukulima Sacco was formed in 1972 when employees of the Ministry of Agriculture pooled funds to help empower themselves financially. This Sacco doesn’t put restrictions on membership. For instance, formerly employed or self-employed Kenyans can join the sacco, no matter their country of residence, as long as they are Kenyan citizens. Thus, it accepts membership from individuals, corporations, chamas/groups, etc. 

Members of Ukulima Sacco can access different services, such as borrowing, saving, or investing. With only 8 branches and over 58,000 members, this is more than enough proof of the trust that Kenyans have in the sacco. The head offices of Ukulima Sacco are at the Ukulima Cooperative House, Haile Selassie Avenue, Nairobi.

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