Top changes at State Department for Cooperative as Obonyo replaces Njang’ombe.
By Munene Maina
David Obonyo has been appointed the Cooperative Commissioner replacing Geoffrey Njang’ombe. The Public Service Commission has confirmed his appointment as a substantive Cooperative Commissioner following a competitive recruitment process.
In about two and half years, Mr. Obonyo will be the third person to occupy the influential position at the helm of the State Department for Cooperative.
After the retirement of Mary Mungai, who was the first woman Co-operative Commissioner, in 2019, Didacus Ityeng’ was appointed in an acting capacity as a Commissioner and held the position for months before Njang’ombe took over.
Mr. Njang’ombe is set to retire later this year after an illustrious career in civil service spanning over 32 years.
Until his appointment, Obonyo, who started his career as a civil servant in 1990, was the Deputy Commissioner in charge of finance and marketing at the State Department for Cooperative Development. He also served as the acting Secretary for Ethics Commission for Co-operative Societies (ECCOS).
He holds a Masters of arts, rural economics, and co-operation from the Bundelkhand University, India, Bachelor of Arts, Economics, Sociology and Political Science, and a diploma in industrial relations.
He has over 27 years’ service in the co-operative administration serving as Head of Marketing Department, Cooperative Finance and banking, Cooperative County Commissioner, Embu County, Provincial Cooperative Officer in Eastern Province, and District Cooperative officer in Machakos, Maragua, Nyandarua, and Kiambu.
Mr. Obonyo is also a member of the Kenya Society for Professional Co-operators (KSPC).
The State Department for Co-operatives (SDC) plays a significant role in co-operatives management and supervision. In recent years it has been engaged in co-operative policy and institutional reforms to spur the sector’s growth.
The primary goal is to revitalize existing co-operative institutions to enhance value addition and production capacity in line with the National Government’s development agenda.
According to an auditor general’s report, in the Financial Year 2018/2019 ended June 30, 2019, the State Department spent Ksh 70 million to digitize co-operatives services.
It established a Co-operative Management Information System (CMIS), development and implementation of the Sacco Societies Regulatory Authority (SASRA) risk-based supervision framework at the cost of Ksh 30 million, according to Nancy Gathungu, Auditor-General’ report dated September 30, 2020.
During the financial year, the State Department was allocated Ksh 739.3 million, with the office of the Commissioner receiving about Ksh 330 million.
The department is crucial in registration, liquidation, investigation of co-operatives countrywide, ensuring that members’ funds are safe.
The Commissioner for Co-operative Development is the Head of the Technical Departments and the Chief Advisor on Co-operative Legislation and related statutes, their interpretation, application, and implications.
The officer is answerable to the Principal Secretary responsible for Co-operative Development and Marketing Function for executing several duties such as effective coordination of the co-operative technical services; overseeing formulation and implementation of policies and strategies related to the co-operative sector.
The office of the Cooperative Commissioner also sets long-term goals for the development of co-operative movement; develops linkages with development partners and other relevant stakeholders within the co-operative sector nationally, regionally, and internationally, among others.
According to a report submitted to the National Assembly by Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya, the department reviewed the code of conduct for co-operative societies, registered 3752 audited accounts for co-operatives, authorized and registered 300 audit firms, carried compliance audit in 44 counties in 2019.
The State Department also conducted 22 inquiries and inspections to completion besides liquidating 85 co-operative societies in the same period.
Under Njang’ombe’s tenure, SDC has developed model by-laws and Code of Conduct to transform Matatu Saccos into transport co-operatives. The co-operatives savings also increased to over Ksh 766 billion. In addition, the department also facilitated the recovery of non-remittances of monies due to Sacco from employers amounting to Ksh 1.005 billion.
Mr. Munya states that the department has also performed audits and collected data in 24 coffee co-operatives in Nyeri County besides aiding the modernization of News KCC Dairy processing factories.
However, inadequate funding for programmes, unaligned policy, legislative and regulatory framework, aligning operational laws in the counties with the national framework and harmonized policies for effective discharge and enforcement of the subsectors mandate, technology adoption, and low human resource capacity are major hindrances in the effectiveness of the State Department.
