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Borrowers of the Hustler Fund will now be able to access their savings from November this year.
The announcement was made on Friday by Cooperatives and Micro and Small Enterprise CS Simon Chelugui.
Since the inception of the Hustler Fund on December 1, 2022, Chelugui said the government has disbursed Sh36 billion to 22 million Kenyans across the country with a total saving of Sh 1.8 billion.
“We have disbursed over Sh36 billion to 22 million Kenyans. We also have a saving component of Sh1.8 billion. The first saver will access 30 per cent of his savings on the first of November this year,” Chelugui said.
He said the government has removed security features that prevent loan defaulters from being able to access loans when they refuse to pay.
Instead, he said the government is focusing on cultivating the character of borrowers by enlightening them to pay back the loan which will enhance trust.
“We have done away with the traditional securitization way of borrowing. No more security. We are pioneering credit scoring through the character of the borrower,” Chelugui said.
“This is to understand that if you borrow, you need to pay. And if you borrow frequently and pay on time, your credit score will go up.”
He said the advantage of the new way will enable the borrower to gain the trust of other financial institutions.
“In the end, we can now transfer that information to any leading financial institution which can use that information to give you more money,” he said.
“Hustler Fund is a common man’s fund, is a small fund. It’s just used to develop, to mentor, to bring up Kenyans who might be unfortunately disadvantaged and put them back into the financial cycle.”
According to the data released by the Ministry of Cooperatives and MSMEs on September 12, 2023, the government has disbursed a total of Sh36,506,487,819 as personal loans.
Out of the amount, Sh25,798,952,846 has been repaid while customers have made Sh1,825,324,451 in savings.
The data further showed that a total of 21,188,903 customers have opted into the fund, 7,537,965 of them being repeat customers.
In total, the fund has witnessed 49,379,110 transactions.
Meanwhile, the ministry says 454,310 sacco groups have so far been created and opted into the fund while 515,705 others are pending approval. BY THE STAR