How to Use the Budget Module On Kwara Core

Overview

The Budgeting module in Kwara Core helps SACCOs plan, monitor and track their financial performance against approved budgets. It provides visibility into the amounts the SACCO has budgeted for different accounts and allows users to compare those planned amounts against actual accruals recorded in the SACCO's General Ledger (GLs).

This helps SACCOs monitor financial performance, identify variances and make more informed financial decisions.

1. Why Use the Budgeting Module?

A budgeting module helps a SACCO to:

• Plan expected income and expenditure for a specific period.

• Allocate budgets to different accounts and financial activities.

• Monitor actual financial performance against the approved budget.

• Identify areas where actual accruals are above or below the budgeted amounts.

• Support financial planning and decision-making.

• Improve visibility and accountability around the SACCO's financial performance.

• Generate budget information for analysis and reporting.

The Budgeting module provides a central view of the SACCO's planned budget and how it compares with the financial activity recorded in the system.

2. Budgeting Permissions

Before using the Budgeting module, ensure that your user account has the required Budgeting permissions enabled.

If the Budgeting module or specific budgeting functions are not visible, contact your SACCO administrator or Super User to review your assigned roles and permissions.

3. Download and Complete the Budget Template

The first step in creating a budget is to download the Excel template provided under the Budget section.

To do this:

1. Open the Budget section in Kwara Core.

2. Download the provided Excel budget template.

3. Open the template and enter the SACCO's budgeted values for the relevant accounts and period.

4. Review the information to ensure that the figures are correctly entered.

5. Save the completed Excel file.

Guidance: Use the provided template when preparing the budget to ensure that the information is captured in the format required by Kwara Core. Review the figures carefully before uploading the file.

4. Upload the Budget

Once the Excel template has been completed, upload it back into the Budget section.

To upload the budget:

1. Open Budget.

2. Select the option to upload the budget.

3. Select the completed Excel template.

4. Upload the file.

5. Once the upload is successfully completed, the budget will be available in Kwara Core.

After the upload, the budget for the relevant period will be visible in the Budget module.

5. Edit Budgeted Amounts

Once a budget has been uploaded, the SACCO can adjust the budgeted amounts if changes are required.

There are two ways to update the budget:

Edit directly on the Budget page

Hover over the relevant budgeted amount on the Budget page. The edit option will become available, allowing you to update the amount directly.

Re-upload the budget

Alternatively, download or update the Excel budget template with the revised values and re-upload it to Kwara Core.

Guidance: Use direct editing for quick adjustments to individual amounts. For larger or multiple changes, updating the Excel template and re-uploading the budget may be more convenient.

6. View Budget vs Accruals

The Budget vs Accruals section allows the SACCO to compare its budgeted values against the actual accruals recorded in the system.

The accrual values are picked from the SACCO's General Ledger (GLs) in Kwara Core.

This allows the SACCO to review how actual financial activity compares with what was originally budgeted.

For example, if a SACCO budgeted KES 500,000 for a particular expense and the accruals recorded in the relevant GL amount to KES 450,000, the SACCO can use the Budget vs Accruals view to identify the difference between the budgeted and accrued amounts.

Guidance: Review the Budget vs Accruals information regularly to identify significant differences between planned and actual financial activity.

7. Filter by Date Range

The Budgeting module allows users to filter the information based on the available date ranges.

Use the date-range filter to view budgeting information for the relevant period.

Available date ranges may include:

• Monthly

• Quarterly

• Half-yearly

• Yearly

Select the appropriate date range to review the budget and corresponding accruals for that period.

8. Export Budget Information

The Export option allows users to export the budgeting information for further analysis, reporting or record keeping.

To export the information:

1. Navigate to the relevant Budget or Budget vs Accruals view.

2. Apply the required filters or date range.

3. Select Export.

4. Download the generated file.
   
   

Recommended Budgeting Workflow

Download the Excel budget template → Complete the budget information → Upload the completed template → Review the uploaded budget → Edit amounts where required → Navigate to Budget vs Accruals → Select the required date range → Compare budgeted values against GL accruals → Export the information where required.