ICA-Africa Board Members Bided Farewell to Mr. Japheth Magomere, OGW

ICA-Africa board members led by ICA-Africa President High Chief Oriyomi Ayeola and accompanied by the ICA-Africa Regional Director and other cooperative leaders from Kenya, convened at Fairview Hotel on 12^th November 2021 to bid farewell to the out-going ICA-Africa President Mr. Japheth Magomere, OGW.

Mr. Magomere will go down in history books as a great cooperator in his own home country Kenya, in Africa and beyond with an outstanding leadership and tireless devotion to cooperative development in Africa. Before his voluntary retirement in October 2021 from the position of ICA-Africa presidency, he had served in the ICA-Africa regional board for a period of 13 years (10 years as a member at large and 3 years as the President and Vice-President at the Global ICA). He was elected as the ICA-Africa President in October 2018 during the 13^th ICA-Africa Regional Assembly in Abuja – Nigeria through a by-election taking over from the late Mr. Stanley Muchiri of the Cooperative Bank of Kenya - who had taken a voluntary retirement. Coincidently, Mr. Magomere appreciated the fact that it was in the same country (Nigeria) where he was elected to serve his first tenure as a regional board member back in 2008.

Notably, in his own country – Kenya, Mr. Magomere has served as a Delegate of Co-op Holdings Cooperative Society (the anchor shareholder of Cooperative Bank) since 1986 and as a Member of the Institute of Directors of Kenya. He served as the Chairman of Cooperative Alliance of Kenya (CAK), Honourable Secretary of Maisha Bora Sacco, a Council member of East African Farmers Federation since 2008 and later joined the board in 2017, the Chairman of the National Council for Ushirika Day Celebrations (International Day of Cooperatives) and a Board Member of several secondary schools. He was honoured with the Order of the Grand Warrior of Kenya (OGW) in 2009.

Given the above information, Mr. Magomere has therefore served the cooperative movement in Kenya for a period of 40 years. This was outlined by the various cooperative leaders that were present during the luncheon at Fairview hotel; Mr. George Magutu, Chairman of Kenya Union of Savings and Credit Cooperatives (KUSCCO), Mr. Daniel Marube CEO of Cooperative Alliance of Kenya (CAK), Prof. Kamau Ngamau Vice Chancellor Cooperative University of Kenya (CUK), Peter Njuguna CEO of Sacco Societies Regulatory Authority (SASRA) and a representative of State Department of Cooperatives.

As he commonly referred to the cooperatives as the ‘Movement’, Mr. Magomere has truly lived committed to the cooperative movement which was seen through his unwavering support, visionary guidance, exceptional leadership and unconditional commitment in serving the movement. In his opinion, the service to the cooperative movement has enabled him to fully exploit God given talents and skills. The journey was taut and with many hills but with great milestones achieved and celebrate.

Some of these milestones achieved during his service to ICA-Africa includes; increased ICA-Africa membership; the formation of regional sectoral organizations and thematic committees (Alliance Africa Agriculture Cooperative Organization – AAACO, African Association for Cooperative Housing Organization and ICA-Africa Youth Network); establishment of sub-regional offices in the five regional economic blocks of Africa where one has been opened in Egypt for North Africa and talks are ongoing for the southern one and finally the board efficiency and effective governance and realization of the ICA-Africa strategy.

Everyone at ICA-Africa recognizes Mr. Magomere’s ongoing commitment and dedicated service to ICA-Africa members and the cooperative movement in Africa.