2000 teachers ‘vanish’ with Sacco loans

At least 2300 teachers from across the country have non performing loans with the teachers’ saving cooperative, Umwalimu Sacco over the last two years.Officials from the cooperative say some teachers, after acquiring loans from the cooperative, change schools and open accounts with other banks through which their salaries are channeled thereby avoiding or defaulting on the loans.According to Joseph Museruka, the Managing Director of Umwalimu Sacco, the non-performing loans that accumulated over the last two years total to Rwf600 million.Museruka said they have formed partnership with the Credit Reference Bureau (CRB-Africa), a credit risk management organisation, to track the defaulters down. “We are now working with CRB and are convinced that we shall get more information concerning these teachers so that they can repay their loans,” said Museruka.CRB Africa is a private South African company that collects individual consumer credit information that can be used by financial institutions or lenders to get the credit worthiness of borrowers, among other related issues. “Records show that, this year alone, at least1093 teachers who acquired loans from the cooperative have left the schools they accessed the loans from,” Museruka said.Museruka said CRB will not only help in the recovery process but will also prevent any such similar incidences in the future. “This year, teachers have made off with over Rwf284 million although we have managed to trace and recover some money,” he said.He explained that efforts are being made to ensure that the cooperative`s recovery department team gets back the remaining amount.The cooperative`s Credit Director, Jean Desire Usabyimana, told The New Times that districts where the largest sums have been defaulted include Rwamagana and Huye.CRB has information on teachers who defaulted and will use it to inform other financial institutions which, according to Usabyimana, will limit the defaulters from accessing loans from any other lender.The Country Director of CRB, Amiable Nkuranga, said they are in touch with Umwalimu Sacco among other institutions basically about defaulters` information.“We use this information in making sure that these people cannot access loans anywhere from other financial institutions until they pay,” Nkuranga said.He also noted that this is a step that helps in identifying, tracing and making such people to pay.The government established Umwalimu Sacco in 2008 with the aim of empowering teachers by easing their access to soft loans as a way of elevating their social-economic status.Through the cooperative, teachers are now accessing loans from Rwf 3 to 15 million at a 14 percent interest rate, with hope of further reducing it to 11 percent. This year, the cooperative targets to give out 120,000 loans that will cost Rwf 19 billion.

National

2000 teachers ‘vanish’ with Sacco loans