23/02/2026
A SACCO is not primarily an investment club. It is a financial empowerment institution.
The cooperative ideal was never to deliver the highest return on deposits. It was to deliver the lowest sustainable cost of credit.
Dividends and interest are benefits, but affordable credit is the purpose.
If members cannot comfortably borrow to build a home, educate a child, or stabilize a business, then high returns become cosmetic success masking declining social impact. In fact, a SACCO paying extremely high returns should provoke not only excitement, but also examination. It may indicate excellent efficiency — or it may signal expensive borrowing within the same membership.
