The Soroti City Plascon Painters Association has launched a Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisation (SACCO) aimed at improving the livelihoods of its members.
The SACCO is primarily composed of young, energetic individuals with the potential to enhance their well-being while contributing to the wider national development.
During the SACCO launch in Juakali, Soroti City East Division, yesterday, Moses Kato, the Head of Sales at Plascon, a leading paint manufacturing company, encouraged the painters to embrace the initiative, emphasising that it would significantly improve their economic welfare.
Kato highlighted the prevalent culture of dependency among painters in Uganda and urged them to embrace innovation in order to escape poverty.
“We’ve found it challenging to assist painters individually. The creation of a SACCO is a fantastic opportunity to support your development through saving and investment,” Kato explained.
He added that Plascon is supporting the establishment of approximately 35 SACCOs nationwide for painters who use their paint products. This initiative, Kato believes, will promote unity and foster growth within the sector.
“It becomes far easier for painters to access financial support from development partners and government agencies when they are organised into SACCO groups,” he continued.
Kato further appealed to all painters in the Teso Subregion to adopt saving practices, which he sees as a means to bring about positive change within their communities.
Pius Okunga, Chairperson of the Soroti City Painters Association, confirmed that the association is fully registered with Soroti City authorities. “Our association adheres to all the regulatory requirements set by Soroti City East Division, and we have the necessary documentation to establish a SACCO,” Okunga stated.
The SACCO, which currently has 72 members, requires an annual subscription fee of Shs 50,000 from each member.
Patrick Elengu, one of the SACCO members, expressed his gratitude for the initiative, stating that the SACCO will greatly ease financial challenges faced by painters, especially given the frequent delays in payments from their employers.
“As painters in Soroti City, we’ve long struggled with late payments from our employers. With this SACCO, we will be able to address some of our financial difficulties without having to wait for our bosses to pay us first,” Elengu said.
