Mbabane- Young entrepreneurs in Eswatini are set to gain easier access to affordable finance following the establishment of the country’s first digital-first Savings and Credit Cooperative (SACCO), a move expected to strengthen financial inclusion and support the growth of youth-owned businesses.
The initiative, supported by the German Cooperative and Raiffeisen Confederation (DGRV), allows members to save, purchase shares and apply for affordable loans entirely through their mobile phones. With minimum savings starting from E50 the digital SACCO is designed to remove traditional barriers to financial services for young people, workers and families.
Speaking during Eswatini Television Market View interview, DGRV Project Advisor Thandeka Dambata said the platform was created to empower young people to mobilise their own resources and finance business ventures through a cooperative model.
“The digital SACCO provides a platform for young people to start saving together and participate in their own economic development. It creates a resource base from which they can access funding for their businesses and other productive activities,” she said.
Unlike conventional savings and credit cooperatives, the new model operates entirely online, enabling members to open accounts, make deposits and access cooperative services without visiting a physical office.
Dambata said the digital approach was tailored to young people, whose daily activities increasingly revolve around mobile technology.
She said, however, that technology alone would not guarantee the success of the cooperative, stressing that strong governance would remain fundamental to its sustainability.
According to Dambata good governance ensures that members actively participate in the management of the cooperative while leaders remain accountable for the decisions they make.
She explained that cooperatives are founded on the principles of self-reliance, self-administration and self-responsibility, making member participation essential to their long-term success.
“When governance is not done properly, it creates problems with sustainability, trust and accountability, which ultimately slows the growth and development of the cooperative,” she said.
Because members entrust the cooperative with their savings, Dambata said accountability and transparency were critical to maintaining confidence and ensuring leaders always acted in the best interests of members.
She added that sound governance would also enable the cooperative to expand sustainably while safeguarding members’ financial resources.
Beyond improving access to finance, Dambata identified poor saving habits among young people as one of the biggest obstacles to financial empowerment.
She called for financial literacy to be introduced from an early age, saying children should be taught the importance of saving and prudent money management instead of spending every lilangeni they receive.
Dambata also encouraged young people to embrace cooperative models as a way of pooling resources to finance business opportunities, arguing that stronger savings habits and collective action could help address youth unemployment and build more resilient enterprises in Eswatini.
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