Cooperatives and Micro, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya has called on cooperative societies to seek loans from government institutions to undertake value addition for their products.
Oparanya cited the Kenya Industrial Estates (KIE), which has Sh3 billion in their accounts, saying the organisation gives loans of between Sh100,000 and Sh20 million to organised groups.
The CS who was speaking in Iten said KIE has officers in all counties, where residents can apply for the funds, but regretted that the monies are yet to be disbursed as most Kenyans are not even aware.
He added that there was also the Kjet programme in his department, which finances up to a third of the total cost of projects, saying, though it targets the youth, it also finances agricultural-based cooperative societies.
