A committee (also called kameeti, BC or ROSCA) is a group savings scheme with no interest and no bank. Pakistanis run them everywhere, in Karachi, Dubai, Riyadh, Manchester and Toronto alike. It works when the rules are clear from the start and the record is written down. This guide is for the organizer.
A group of people each pay the same amount every month. Each month the whole pot goes to one member. It runs until every member has had one turn.
Example: 10 people pay AED 1,000 a month. Each month AED 10,000 is collected and handed to one person. The committee runs for 10 months. Everyone pays in AED 10,000 and takes out AED 10,000. The only difference is when.
Only people you know. A committee runs on trust, with no contract behind it. Do not take responsibility for someone nobody in the group knows.
People with a steady income. The biggest risk is someone who took an early turn and then loses their income.
6 to 10 people for a first committee. More members means a longer committee and more to manage.
3. Contribution and length
Set the contribution at a level the lowest earner in the group can pay comfortably every month. The length equals the number of members: 12 members means 12 months.
If someone wants to put in more, give them two shares. They pay double and get two turns, and nobody else's contribution changes.
4. Deciding the turns
Method
When it fits
Drawing lots
Everyone is equal and nobody is in a hurry
By need
Someone has a wedding, fees or a move coming and takes an early turn
Organizer first
Common practice, since the organizer carries the responsibility. Say so at the start
Whatever the method, fix the order before the first month and send it to everyone in writing. Change it later only if everyone agrees.
5. The monthly record
Each month the organizer needs three things written down:
Who has paid and who has not
A screenshot of each online transfer
Who received the payout this month, and when
Paper works, but paper gets lost, and members keep asking "when is my turn?". That is why many organizers keep the record on their phone.
Keeping a committee in Sahulat
A monthly list of who has paid and who has not
Members can attach a screenshot of their transfer for the organizer to see
Every member and their turn, and whose turn it is this month
Invited members see their own turn in their own app
Multiple shares, and your own contributions too
Any currency: dirhams, riyals, pounds, dollars, rupees
Free, works offline, no ads. Up to 3 committees at no charge.
Use one currency for the whole committee. If members are in different countries, agree whether it is in dirhams, riyals or rupees, and who carries the exchange difference.
Plan for people leaving. Visas end and jobs change. Agree what happens if a member leaves the country before the committee ends, especially one who has already had a turn.
Bank transfers leave a trail. Ask for transfers rather than cash where you can, and keep the screenshots.
Check local rules. Informal savings groups between friends are common, but some countries regulate collecting money from the public. Keep it to people you know, and check if you are unsure.
7. When someone does not pay
Talk to them on day one. The longer it waits, the harder it gets.
Do not hold up the payout. The person whose turn it is did nothing wrong. The organizer covers the gap, from their own pocket or by agreement with the others, and recovers it from the late member.
Members who have had their turn are the bigger risk. Give the early turns to the people the group trusts most.
Write it all down. When it was due, when it came, what is outstanding. In a dispute, that record is what counts.
8. What to agree before you start
Put all of this in one message, send it to every member, and get everyone's "OK":
The monthly contribution and the number of members (shares)
The date each month contributions are due
The date of the payout
Each member's turn
Cash or transfer, and if transfer, to which account
What happens if a contribution is late
What happens if someone wants to leave, or leaves the country