Ministry of Cooperatives Dismisses Hustler Fund Critique
The Ministry of Cooperatives and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises Development has strongly refuted claims of the Hustler Fund's failure, dismissing a report by the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) as "politically driven, deceptive, and factually defective."
Speaking at a press briefing on Monday afternoon, Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya said the report's conclusions were "politically veiled" and its title, "Failing the Hustlers," explicitly betrayed the study's true purpose.
The CS further argued that the report's assessment period was based on the financial year 2022/2023, when the fund had only been operational for seven months, making the conclusions premature and misleading.
Oparanya emphasized that the ministry was not consulted during the research process, calling the methodology flawed. He also contested the report's claims on the fund's capitalization and performance, stating that a staggering 26 million Kenyans had accessed the fund and that over 5 million borrowers had demonstrated a strong repayment history.
Earlier on Monday, the KHRC released its damning report, which described the Hustler Fund as a "politically expedient but economically disastrous initiative." The rights watchdog concluded that the fund is "structurally unsound, economically unsustainable, and politically manipulated," recommending that the government scrap it entirely.
The report's findings included a 68% default rate on loans, which the ministry has since challenged.
Tags: Hustler Fund Ministry of Cooperatives and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Wiliam Ruto Wycliffe Oparanya
