The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) Secretary General Akelo Misoru has revealed that the union has now successfully registered and is currently running a Savings and Credit Co-operative (Sacco).
According to the Sec-Gen, the Sacco is set to be a game-changer for the Union and its members who are more than 120,000.
“As a union, we have registered our long-desired Sacco, Walimu Solidarity Sacco, which is already up and running. Creating and launching the Sacco is a real game-changer for the Union,” said Akelo Misori.
Creating a Sacco was one of the main agendas of the current National Executive Board (NEB) led by the National Chairperson Hon. Omboko Milemba who is also defending his Emuhaya parliamentary seat in this year’s General Elections and his counterpart Akelo Misori upon being re-elected for another five-year term.
According to the union’s NEB in their manifesto, the Sacco was made after converting the Union’s National Governing Council Welfare Fund to a Sacco. The union will now mobilize members’ savings and mark a new beginning for teachers’ empowerment as the Sacco is set to create a special fund to cushion its members during teacher strikes.
The union is planning to empower its members to withstand strikes by creating investment vehicles to mobilize savings and resources to sustain the Union during emergencies.
“Drawing lessons from teachers’ Unions in Ghana and Swaziland, KUPPET intends to launch a Sacco wholly bankrolled by the Union. The Sacco will be achieved by the conversion of the National Governing Council Welfare Fund, a process which is already underway,” read the union’s manifesto.
In the meeting, the KUPPET Sec-Gen also spoke about the recent development in carrying out institutional capacity the Union undertook, and which started in August last year, to equip all the Union Officials and employees with the latest skills for the Union leadership.
“Over the last three months, we have conducted workshops for Branch Treasurers ad Assistant Treasurers, and BEC (Branch Executive Committee) members from all Union committees, which have all defined the modalities for their operations,” Misori said during the conference.
The Conference was themed: Building Resilience for Future Adaptation: Union’s Perspectives.
Misori called on all union members and its leadership to deploy their strengths to not just meet today’s needs but also future trends and prepare for any challenges adequately.