Thousands of people who borrowed money from Savings and Credit Cooperative Organizations (SACCOs) face arrest if they fail to honour their repayment obligations.
According to President Yoweri Museveni, people who fail to pay back SACCO loans or cows and goats from the Wealth Creation projects should be held accountable in accordance with the law.
“Laws should be enforced on those people who fail to pay back SACCO loans or those who take cows and goats from the Wealth Creation Projects and fail to bring back a calf or ‘Empaano’ to be passed on to the next beneficiary,” he said.
The President, who was accompanied by the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Janet Museveni, made the remarks while addressing the people of Greater Kisozi at Kisozi Primary School ground in Gomba district.
Mr. Museveni said that the projects were started to assist communities for income generation, food security and home improvement in order to speed up the rural transformation as a way of fighting poverty in the country.
Museveni said the Greater Kisozi area now has improved roads, schools, hygiene and food and advised them to put more effort on households’ income generation.
The President commended the Poverty Alleviation Department in State House for using the Model Parish strategy where famers are given better yielding seeds following its five pillars namely; income generation, food security, home improvement on sanitation and hygiene, value addition and marketing, savings and credit, to fight poverty in the district.
“I thank my office, Department of Poverty Alleviation for the work they have done in this district because all the nine villages in this district have got food and sanitation is good. I am happy to hear that only 439 households out of 1696 have not got ‘empaano’. We shall provide them with one,” he said
President Museveni also said that the government will work on water issues in the district and extend electricity to village level to enable farmers add value to maize and coffee. He also revealed that he will provide them with milling machines. He commended the best farmers in each village and promised an irrigation project scheme to be extended to their farms.
In her speech the First Lady advised the people of Uganda to learn how to save so that they are able to support themselves. She added that more schools, teachers’ quarters and toilets will be built in Gomba district.
The State Minister for Water, Ronald Kibuule, said government will use solar power pumps to provide water in villages as well as dams, adding that clean water will be pumped from River Katonga.
The area LC1 Chairman, John Lule, thanked the government for all the initiatives on fighting poverty in his village and the district of Gomba at large. He testified that banana farming has drastically improved food security, transformed the lives of the people living in his area, and that his annual income from the crop is Shs.18 million per year. He, therefore, advised people to embrace the government projects of Wealth Creation and model strategy.
