The eagerly awaited Kenya USA Diaspora Savings and Credit Cooperative Organization (SACCO) is finally here.
Announcing this development via his Facebook account, the SACCO Chairman, Frank Kioko says his team is now ready and the organization is now accepting new members.
The SACCO was formally launched amid pomp and color at an Atlanta hotel mid last year at an event attended by the then Minister of Cooperatives, Joseph Nyagah and Kenya’s ambassador to the U.S., Elkanah Odembo.
“We have been working on the nitty gritties to make sure that we don’t give our clients a half baked product,” Kioko told this reporter in a recent phone interview.
But making the announcement Thursday, Mr. Kioko said the system is now up and running and all Kenyans in the United States are welcome to apply.
To apply for membership, Mr Kioko says all one needs is a valid Kenyan ID/Passport and a Colored passport size photograph.
Members are eligible to apply for a loan after one year of continuous and regular deposits to the Main Savings Account.
Loans are given up to three times the amount of SACCO savings, while the maximum repayment period is 4 years (48 months), depending on the loan type.
“Interest rates charged on the loans vary with the loan type but are generally lower than rates offered by traditional banks in Kenya,” says Kioko. He outlines the following benefits for potential members:
- Opportunity to save and borrow up to (3) times your shares
- Realize your dreams – Invest in Kenya while you’re still in the Diaspora
- Easy access to loans at lower interest rates than any bank in Kenya
- Convenient – Take and service your loan while you’re still in the Diaspora
- Less tedious loan application process and quick loan approvals
- Your savings automatically become 30% of your collateral
- Enjoy secure long term investment that limits withdrawal temptations
- Take advantage of group investment and group property development
- Easy, secure and flexible options of making payments to your Sacco account
- Earn high returns on your money instead of just letting it sit somewhere in a Kenyan or American bank account earning very little or nothing
- Be in control over your investments without involving your family, relatives or friends
- Access your account online, view up-to-date statements and balances of your Sacco account, 24/7, anytime anywhere!
Mr Kioko says that his team believes that the Kenya USA Diaspora Sacco is the ultimate solution to financial problems facing Kenyans in the Diaspora because it is owned, driven and managed by the Kenyans in the Diaspora.
To qualify and become a member of Kenya USA Diaspora Sacco, one must meet the following requirements.
- Be a Kenyan over 18 years old, in gainful employment and residing in the United States of America (USA)
- Have a valid Kenyan Passport or a Kenyan National ID
- Possess an active U.S. bank account, credit or debit card
- Provide a colored passport size photograph
- Provide information for a designated next of Kin (nominee) who resides in the United States or in Kenya
- Pay a one-time non-refundable membership fee of Kenya Shillings (KES) 4,000
- Purchase a minimum of five (5) shares of Kenya Shillings (KES) 1,000 each in the Sacco.
Other board members include Angela Karanja as the Secretary, Raphael Kilondu as the Treasurer, and Rose Musyoka as the Investment and Credit Chairperson who is also in charge of IT.
For more information, one may call 678-398-7728 or emailinfo@kenyadiasporasacco.com
Or visit www. www.kenyadiasporasacco.com
By BMJ Muriithi in New York
http://www.kenyasatellitenetwork.com/
