YOUR ADVISORY PARTNER FOR SOUND SACCO MANAGEMENT
At Ronalds LLP we recognize the economic impact of a strong co-operative sector and the role that the Kenyan cooperative sector has played in improving the lives of its members.
Our understanding of this sector coupled with our culture of offering exceptional value means that we keep developing products based on the current market trends.These services among others include:Audit, Taxation, IT, Governance, Enterprise Risk Management, Financial Reporting among others.
We have had the privilege of working with reputable SACCO Societies over the last decade improving their efficiency while strengthen their governance and leadership thus making them more sustainable and prosperous.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
Services we offer to the cooperative sector;
Audits.
Ronalds LLP is not your ordinary accounting firm. Our approach to external audit is with a view of adding more value to the SACCO; departing from the traditional model and ensuring that the audit engagement is geared towards making the SACCO strong.
In developing our SACCO Audit programs, we recognize that each entity is different from the other and is formed of a unique culture and background that defines its existence.
Other than the traditional audit programs designed under the International Standards on Auditing (IAS) which are for the purpose of forming an auditor’s opinion, we perform other value adding assurance that are of importance for the SACCO’s decision making.
These value adding assessments are in the areas of:
• SACCO’s IT general controls review and advisory
• Governance structure review and advisory
• Risk review for the SACCO and advisory on the areas of opportunity
• Tax review and compliance
• Financial reporting and disclosures.
Taxation for Sacco Societies and Cooperatives.
Recent trends in the taxation for SACCOs has seen the government taking a more aggressive approach and bringing more SACCO revenues to taxation thus affecting the SACCOs’ bottom line and members’ take home dividends.
SACCOs need to be more prudent in their tax planning. It is therefore imperative that a SACCO considers engaging the services of a professional tax advisor in order to offer expert advice in how to realign their tax matters. This tax advisory will help management manage tax exposure-related risks and utilize opportunities in tax laws.
Our expertise in SACCO taxation includes:
• Tax health check
• KRA representation
• Tax planning
• Annual tax compliance
• Tax training
Information Systems Audit.
Our Information Systems’ review is guided by the Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology (COBIT 5.0) management guidelines and Information Infrastructure Library (ITIL). It involves a review of the IT strategic plan, IT Policies and Procedures to ensure that a sound system of internal control and governance has been put in place over management of the IT environment.
Our IT control review pays attention to the functionality and configuration of different financial and operational systems of the SACCO. This is assessed against key business requirements and design documents to identify any gaps and functional or technical issues. The functionality and configurations will also be compared to industry leading practices keeping the SACCO’s business process in perspective.
Full review of the SACCO IT infrastructure covers the network architectural design and security assessment to identify various aspects such as; DMZ review, improper placement of systems, improper configurations on various security devices such as servers, firewalls, router and switches, single points of failure and lack of redundancy. This is performed based on the network architecture shared and discussions with the IT team at the SACCO.
Cyber Security
In order to assess the SACCO’s controls over cyber-attacks, we utilize its in-house cyber security framework which represents the six core capabilities for the majority of institutions in the financial sector on cyber security. The framework provides a structure for the multiple components required to protect an organization – its products and services, its customers and staff, its processes and systems – from malicious cyber security threats.
Governance Audit
In carrying out a Governance audit we review a SACCO’s governance structure and its mode of operations. We also review the relationship between management, the Board of Directors, and other stakeholders.
Our Governance Audit determines if there is:
• Effective leadership.
• Commitment to vision, mission, and values.
• Clear definition of functions roles and responsibilities.
• Clarity of Management roles and board roles.
• Mutual trust within the board and between management and board.
• Balance of competences and skills.
• Proper information management.
• Turnover of board members.
• Succession planning.
• Board burnout-loss of energy, interest, and inability to function
Risk Management
SACCOs are faced with various risks that if not mitigated can cause adverse effects to the SACCO’s operations. We review the available risk register for completeness and level of compliance and perform a risk mapping for risk rating and prioritization during risk management.
