Kenya Nyeri Region Coffee Cooperative Committee Ordered to Dissolve by Government Due to Financial Mismanagement!

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Kenyan Government Dissolves Troubled Rumukia Coffee Cooperative

The Kenyan government, through the Office of the Coffee Cooperative Commissioner, has dissolved the already troubled Rumukia Cooperative Committee. The cooperative, located in Mukurwe-ini, Neri region, has fallen into financial disarray due to mismanagement, turning this once large coffee cooperative into chaos. This decision came after the Neri County Government and the national coffee cooperative department had investigated allegations of financial misappropriation by the cooperative's management committee.

Interim Committee Appointed to Oversee Operations

Meanwhile, the Office of the Coffee Cooperative Commissioner has ordered elections to be held on February 9th to select a five-member interim committee to supervise the operations of the Rumukia Cooperative for the next three months, until a formal committee is elected.

Financial Crisis and Debt Accumulation

The dissolved management committee has drawn attention for a loan of 60 million shillings (Kenyan currency) obtained several years ago, which has now accumulated to 16.3 billion shillings. The financier, Taifa Sacco, has threatened to auction the cooperative's assets to recover this money. Farmers affiliated with the association have distanced themselves from the lending institution, stating they will not approve the loan nor allow themselves to benefit from it. For years, farmers from the eight processing plants under the association have barely received any product payments.

Due to the Rumukia Cooperative's persistent debts, many coffee farmers have started selling their coffee to other coffee cooperatives.

Root Causes of Financial Mismanagement

According to the Assistant Cooperative Commissioner, the dissolved management committee's consecutive leadership since 2012 has led to unreasonable financial decisions. "The cooperative's previous main problem was financial discipline - all funding shortages were filled through borrowing, which caused the loan amount to increase every year."

He also stated, "The management did not seek a permanent solution but continued to borrow money to maintain inflated expenditures and subsidize payments to members, ostensibly 'to please them'. However, the farmers were not satisfied with these behaviors. But they believed that if they reported the cooperative committee at that time, they might lose their property."

Rebuilding Trust and Moving Forward

"Now that the problematic committee has been dissolved, it is important to rebuild the confidence of members who have left the cooperative." Meanwhile, the Assistant Cooperative Commissioner requested that the county government officials responsible for coffee associations in the region work closely with the interim committee to help the cooperative regain its lost honor.

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