International Co-operative Alliance Regional Office for Africa

CIC Insurance Seeks to Recruit Youth to Co-operatives

CIC INSURANCE Group Kenya projects to enlist 500,000 youth into the cooperative movement through a new campaign dubbed, “I’m a Co-operator”. The insurer has invested Sh. 40 million             (USD  471,000) in the initiative to attract youth to the cooperatives as a run up to 2012 which has been declared by UN as the international Year of Co-operatives.

“Though the co-operative movement has been a great tool for economic emancipation, the youth have  widely shunned it owing to the perception that it is a preserve of the old” says Mr Nelson Kuria, the Managing Director CIC Insurance Group.

Kenya has over 12,000 registered co-operative societies with over nine million members as compared to slightly over 1000 at independence in 1963.”Co-operatives control 43 percent of GDP and holds  Shs. 230 billion (USD 27 billion)  in National Savings the more the reason the youth should join it” said Mr. Kuria.
He was speaking during the ongoing “I’m a Co-operator University Circuit” at Egerton University. Through “I’m a Co-operator” the Insurer hopes to directly impact 3,000 young people in universities and millions indirectly.

The youth campaign, running from May to August this year will target university students  through-out  Kenya. The youth project is expected to attract various experts speakers from the UNDP, Co-operative organizations, and the Ministry of Co-operative Development and Marketing.

 In April this year Mr. Kuria was nominated to join a UN expert group meeting in Mongolia held to strategise on priority issues and activities for International Year of co-operatives and those to be included in the UN plan of action in co-operative development beyond 2012
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Story – Daily Nation correspondent