On July 8, 2025, the Plenary Sitting of the Chamber of Deputies received the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Yusuf Murangwa, who presented detailed oral explanations on the current status of Umurenge SACCOs (U-SACCOs), addressing past operational challenges and outlining the government's efforts to transform these institutions into modern, professional, and efficient financial cooperatives.

During his presentation, Minister Murangwa informed the Chamber that as of August 2024, all 416 U-SACCOs operating across Rwanda’s administrative sectors had completed the automation phase. This critical transition from manual operations to automated Management Information Systems (MIS) has significantly enhanced operational efficiency, improved internal controls, and elevated the quality of service delivery to SACCO members.

The Minister further explained that the second phase of the transformation project, consolidation, is already in progress. This phase involves merging automated U-SACCOs at the district level to form District SACCOs (D-SACCOs). As of July 2025, seven districts including Nyarugenge, Gasabo, Kicukiro, Gicumbi, Rubavu, Rwamagana, and Nyamagabe have successfully transitioned to the D-SACCO model. The government’s target is to complete the consolidation process in all 30 districts by the end of the 2025/2026 fiscal year.

This nationwide consolidation will lay the groundwork for the establishment of a national Cooperative Bank, which will be collectively owned by D-SACCOs. The Cooperative Bank will operate as a second-tier financial institution, providing SACCOs with more advanced services and enhancing the financial capacity of the cooperative sector.

Minister Murangwa also highlighted the rollout of mobile banking systems across SACCO branches. These digital platforms are designed to improve financial accessibility and convenience for members, enabling them to conduct transactions, receive real-time notifications, and access services remotely without the need for physical visits to SACCO offices.

The establishment of U-SACCOs in 2008 was a direct response to the 2008 Fins Cope survey, which revealed that over half of Rwanda’s adult population was financially excluded. U-SACCOs were created to promote financial inclusion by enabling citizens in all corners of the country to save, access credit at affordable rates, and engage with the formal financial sector.