Oparanya
Cooperatives and MSMEs Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya has announced he will track down all hustler fund defaulters.
Speaking on Friday, August 23 during the annual Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Conference in Nairobi, Oparanya revealed that a total of 19 million out of the 21 million Kenyans who borrowed the hustler fund defaulted on the loan.
Oparaya noted that the money borrowed from the Hustler Fund is public money and should be repaid for others to also enjoy.
“This Hustler Fund was very innovative and digital but the problem is that in the first round, 21 million people borrowed money. Out of that, 19 million disappeared with the money. 2 million are the ones borrowing regularly. Soon we shall be awarding those who are good borrowers.
“But this is public money which should be borrowed and repaid so that other people benefit from it. So for those 19 million, I’m coming for you, to make sure you pay so that others can benefit,” said Oparanya.
The Cooperatives CS revealed that his Ministry was coming up with a system to track the Husler Fund defaulters to their homes.
“We are coming up with a system that will now track you and know where you are. You will see someone knocking,” Oparanya added.
The Husler Fund is a digital financial inclusion initiative designed to improve financial access to responsible finance for personal, micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Kenya.
The Fund was launched in November 2022 by President William Ruto to support Kenyans with products that are responsive to their enterprises.
The core objective of The Hustler Fund is to offer holistic financial solutions targeting people at the bottom of the pyramid.
The government in July revealed it had so far disbursed Ksh54 billion to borrowers with the number of repeat borrowers exceeding 8 million people.
Also Read: President Ruto Launches Second Hustler Fund Project Targeting Saccos and Chamas
