One of Galana’s proudest traits as a company is its ability to empower its employees’ personal development. Delga Sacco has been a pace setter in enhancing this development by enabling employees to consolidate their savings under one roof.
Delga Sacco was started back in 2004 with a vision of empowering staff to achieve their personal developmental goals. It started with around 15 members under the stewardship of Mr. John Macharia and Mr. Anthony Munyasya and under the guidance of Mr. George Kahira.
Through the years, this vision has enabled Delga Sacco to remain steady and has led to a gradual growth in membership as the company also grew. The highest number of members (45) was recorded in 2014.
Today, the Sacco is proud of the milestones it has achieved particularly in enabling the staff to acquire property such as land and buildings, pay for dowry, execute weddings and pay school fees for the their relatives among others.
Currently, the Sacco is run by an Executive Committee that is headed by the Chairman Mr. Stephen Mucheru. Other Executive committee members include Ms. Nyawira Mwangi , Ms. Carol Muthee ,Ms. Winfred Kilewe and Mr. Raphael Kimani. The Executive Committee’s actions are overseen by a supervisory committee.
The major roles played by the executive committee include maintaining the Sacco’s Books of accounts, advancing loans to members, paying out interest to members, organizing AGMs (that are usually held in February and March) as well as ensuring that the Sacco adheres to all statutory requirements.
While its membership is voluntary, it is however limited only to the staff of Galana Oil Kenya Limited. Membership is guided by the following requirements:
- Membership registration fee is Kes 1,000
- Minimum monthly contribution is Kes 3,000 and
- Shareholding subscription fee is Kes 5,000 that is payable within 6 months upon joining. This is non-refundable when the member leaves the Sacco.
It is also important to note that:
- Loans are advanced at 2.5 times of the members contributions
- A member is eligible for a loan after having saved for 6 months
- One is required to be guaranteed other by Sacco members to enable loan advancement
- The Interest payable at the end of the year increases as the members savings grow.
Despite the remarkable achievements witnessed, the Sacco has experienced a few challenges over the years. According to the Chairman, the Sacco requires to inculcate an even bigger culture of savings amongst its members in order to raise its liquidity and hence be in a position to facilitate higher loan advancements to the members.
A major drawback has been the reluctance by the staff to invest sizeable earnings into this savings scheme. Mr. Mucheru notes that awareness and education is necessary especially among the younger staff members to encourage them to prioritize on saving and make it a lifestyle.
The Sacco is working on campaigns targeted at bringing in new members. The Executive committee’s aim is to have all staff members join the Sacco. They intend to brand the Sacco in such an attractive way that they will reach the core of each and every member of staff.
Additionally, it is notable that members need to increase their interest on the goings on in the Sacco. This will help the Sacco to grow in terms of its engagement in diverse agendas. A lot of other Saccos are taking part in real estate development and it is only through member involvement that Delga Sacco will move in that direction.
Nonetheless, it is worth noting that the Saco has progressed smoothly over the years. It has been in a position to share interests to its members yearly from its inception. Compared to other Saccos, it only has a waiting period of about one week for Loan applications to be processed. It has not has a case of misappropriation by any member of the executive committee, meaning that the members savings are safe in the Sacco.
New members who would like to join the Sacco should contact any member of the executive committee.
“Do not save what is left after spending, but spend what is left after saving” Warren Buffet
