THE SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE

1. DEFINITION

Section 2 (a) of the Co-operative Society Act, No. 12 of 1997 (as amended in 2004) has the following simple definition:-

Supervisory Committee

"Supervisory Committee" means an oversight committee elected at a General Meeting.

2. ESTABLISHMENT

The Supervisory Committee is established under Rule 28 of the Co-operative Society Rules (Legal Notice No. 123 of 2004) which states as follows:-

28. (1) Every society shall have a supervisory committee consisting of three members
each elected at a general meeting for a period of three years and one member of the
supervisory committee shall retire annually.
(2) Notwithstanding the provision of sub-rule (1), any member of the supervisory
committee may be removed by a resolution of a general meeting.
(3) The duties of the supervisory committee shall include—
(a) verification of all transactions of the society;
(b) writing periodic reports of its findings to be tabled at management
committee meetings;
(c) submission of its reports to the Commissioner;
(d) presenting its reports to the general meeting.

(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-rule (3), the supervisory committee shall not perform the duties or exercise any of the powers of the Committee of the society.

3. ELECTION 

The election of the Supervisory Committee is conducted in accordance with the Rule 28 and relevant By-laws of the society.

4. QUALITIES OF THE SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE

a) The members of the Supervisory Committee shall meet the same qualifications as those of the members of the Management Committee

b) In addition at least one member of the member of the committee shall have basic bookkeeping, accounting, auditing or financial management knowledge. Where no such person is elected, those elected may be taken for basic accounting training.

5. POSITION OF THE SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE

a) The Committee is elected directly by the members at a General Meeting. It occupies the same position as the Management Committee in the organization structure of the society.

b) The Committee is independent

c) The Committee is not a Sub-Committee of the Management Committee

6. ROLE OF THE SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE

The Supervisory Committee is the Internal Audit Committee of the Society. Its role is complimentary to that of the Management Committee which is mainly to ensure that there is an effective control system in the Society.

The main objective is that of assisting the Management Committee in ensuring that adequate checks and balances are put in place that the principles of transparency and accountability are observed for the good of the Society and its members. There should be no antagonizing between the two committees.

7. DUTIES OF THE SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE

The main duties of the Supervisory Committee are provided for under respective By-laws of each society and include the following:-

1. Making an investigation into the affairs of the Society at least once every quarter and presenting a written report to the Management Committee and the Commissioner.
2. Carrying out an Audit of the Society at least once every quarter and presenting a report as above.
3. From time to time and at least every years cause the Pass Book or Payslips or Statements of accounts of all members to be compared with the Members' Personal Accounts maintained by the Society.
4. Make annual reports to the Annual General Meeting with copies to the Management Committee and the Commissioner.
5. In order to accomplish the main duties above, the Supervisory Committee is required to undertake the following specific tasks among others:-

• Scrutiny of minutes of all committees and General Meetings.
• Scrutiny of members' cheques/loan registers.
• Verify receipts and disbursement of society funds.
• Verify the assets of the society against the assets register from time to time.
• Scrutinize the acquisition and disposal of goods and services and adherence to the procurement and disposal regulations.
• Verify deductions through the check off system, cash and bank standing order remittances.
• Confirm cash regularly and reconcile it with the records.
• Check out bank accounts monthly and their reconciliation.
• Check delinquent loans among the Committee, staff and members and ensure appropriate action is taken.
• Verify society investments.
• Analyze expenses of the society.
• Check loan applications and note anomalies.
• Check balance sheets and income and expenditure statements to ensure their accuracy.
• Ensure the books of the society are kept in accordance with the internationally accepted standards.
• Make regular review of budgets against actual performance.
• Attend to member' complaints.
• Assist the management committee in seeking to problems facing the society.
• Generally ensure that the society is operating according to the law and working towards the achievement of the stated goals and objectives.
• Carry out any other duties as may be prescribed in the Act and the Rules.

8. MEETINGS OF THE SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE

1. Routine meetings of the Supervisory Committee shall be held as provided for in the By-Laws and approved budget of the society.
2. The Supervisory Committee should hold at least one quarterly joint meeting with the Management Committee to discuss their reports.
3. Minutes of all Supervisory Committee meetings should be recorded and maintained as permanent records of the society.
4. The Internal Auditor of the society may participate in the deliberations of the Supervisory Committee as an ex-official member. Where the society has no internal auditor, the accountant/bookkeeper/manager may participate in the same capacity.
5. The manager or Management Committee of the society shall at all times make available to the Supervisory Committee all books of account and all other records of the society for inspection.
6. Joint meetings are normally chaired by the chairman of the Management Committee.

9. ALLOWANCES

The Supervisory Committee should draw sitting and any other allowances as provided for in the budget approved by the General Meeting.