Government de-registers over 3,300 cooperative unions
What you need to know:
The decision came after expiry of the 90-day notice issued by the government on January 5, this year when it welcomed petitions from the 3,436 cooperative unions that had been put on the list to be de-registered.
Dar es Salaam. The government yesterday deregistered over 3,300 fake, dormant and law defiant cooperative unions from the country’s registry of cooperatives.
Agriculture minister Japhet Hasunga told a press conference in Dodoma yesterday that the decision had been reached after expiry of the 90-day notice issued by the government on January 5, 2020.
On that day, the government welcomed petitions from 3,436 cooperative unions challenging the government’s decision.
“Only 88 cooperative unions filed their petitions to the assistant registrar of cooperatives in respective regions as of April 17, this year. The government has agreed with petitions filed by cooperative unions which left us with 3,348 unions which are deregistered effectively from today,” he said.
He said deregistered cooperative unions include; 2,513 Savings and Credits Cooperative Unions (Saccos), 229 Agricultural Marketing Cooperative Union (Amcos), 77 livestock cooperatives and 27 consumers cooperatives.
Others are 70 services unions, 15 beekeeping unions, nine housing unions, 22 minerals unions, 79 industrial unions, 32 fishing unions, 31 irrigation unions and 244 others.
“Following this decision cooperative unions in the registrar’s registry has decreased to 8,611,” he said outlining achievements recorded by the government in developing cooperatives in a period between 2005 and 2020.
He said during that period the number of registered cooperative unions has increased from 7,394 to 11,626 and the value of loans offered by Saccos raised from Sh1.3 trillion in December 2018 to Sh1.5 trillion in March 2020.
“Also, the value of shares, savings and deposits significantly increased from Sh654 billion in December 2018 to Sh819 billion in March 2020,” he said.
According to him, the increase was greatly contributed by increased government’s efforts to strengthen inspection and control of cooperative unions aiming at reflecting on transparency, accountability and good governance in the development of cooperatives in the country.
