Rafiki Bank CEO Daniel Mavindu (left) receives a title deed for an acre
of land worth Sh2.5 million from Ndatani Enterprises chief executive
Alexander Muema in Nairobi last week. The land is the top prize in the
East Africa Chama Awards launched by the bank in September. PHOTO |
DIANA NGILA
By DAVID HERBLING
In Summary
- Rafiki Microfinance Bank launches competition to identify fastest-growing group in new entrepreneurship drive.
- Rafiki estimates that one in every three Kenyan adults is a member of an investment club, giving rise to more than 300,000 groups.
The search for Kenya’s top investment groups
popularly known as chamas is on following the launch of a competition to
profile the successes of investment clubs.
Rafiki Microfinance Bank has invited chamas across the
region to participate in the inaugural East Africa Chama Awards meant to
showcase the power of group investments.
The business competition – styled along the Top 100
mid-sized companies’ survey – seeks to identify Kenya’s fastest growing
chamas and highlight some of the country’s most successful investment
club entrepreneurship stories.
The top-tier micro-financier argues that chamas
have evolved into powerful investment vehicles that can be tapped into
for capital financing for SMEs, cheap deposits for banks and lending to
governments.
“The focus of the awards will be to highlight the
evolution of investment groups and recognise the role these groups play
in the mobilisation of resources and national development,” said Daniel
Mavindu, chief executive of Rafiki Microfinance Bank.
“Chamas have made great strides in savings
mobilisations and have transformed into financial machines that drive
our economy,” said Mr Mavindu.
Rafiki estimates that one in every three Kenyan
adults is a member of an investment club, giving rise to more than
300,000 groups.
Kenya’s vibrant and dynamic chama movement is
estimated to control assets worth about Sh300 billion, equivalent to 6.3
per cent of the recently-rebased gross domestic product.
Mr Mavindu revealed that Rafiki serves over 8,000
chamas in Kenya through its 18 branches countrywide. A growing number
of banks in Kenya have tailor-made products targeting chamas and sweeten
the bargains with offerings of training and investment advisory
services.
Rafiki has Chama Supreme Banking for investment
groups; and the market has rival products such as Faulu’s chama account,
chama savings account from Bank of Africa, Co-op Bank’s mshiriki account for groups, tuungane account (KCB Bank) and vuna chama account from Consolidated Bank.
Family Bank offers chama investment account and there is super chama account (National Bank), ufanisi chama account (First Community Bank) and K-Rep Bank’s chama biashara.
“Chamas have become a leading change agent in youth
development by facilitating wealth creation and generating employment
opportunities,” Rafiki said in a statement.
Chamas from across the East African Community (EAC)
—Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi — as well as South Sudan
are eligible to take part in the competition.
The pioneer East Africa Chama Award will also
honour investment groups which show excellence in diversification of
portfolio, highest member contribution, fastest growing club, most
innovative as well as focus on social responsibility.
The overall winning chama of the year will receive a cash prize of Sh1 million and an acre of prime land.
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