The Envelope Please!
I see it’s been award season in Hollywood, but nothing could beat the excitement in Buwudha village when each woman received their envelope with the money they had saved over the past 8 months!
The envelopes you see Hatiba, Silina, Ruth, Fina, Jovia, Zamu, Dina, and the rest of the women holding represent their hard work, sacrifice, and determination to achieve a better life for themselves and their children.
In March, these women started their savings and loan group. They met each month to put whatever money they could into the group fund.
This was no easy feat, as most of the women earn very little from their small businesses. The pandemic wiped out the businesses of the women in the villages completely, and they are still rebuilding.
The funds are now held in a bank account earning interest. (When the first groups started 7 years ago the money was put in a box and buried in the ground each month!)
Along with our partner Kapida, Children’s Legacy Partnership contributed $300 to the fund. In December, each member who had paid into the fund received some of their investment back with interest. They used the money for food and basic supplies during the holidays.
The joy and pride these women felt when receiving their envelopes was incredible! This is what you, our donors make possible!
The interest was also able to buy 4 goats for the women’s business projects. The group is well organized with a committee chairperson and a treasurer.
Learning about savings, interest, and how it compounds has been new to most of the women. Now that they see the power of saving, working together and pooling their resources, they are excited about what they can accomplish.
Several more women in the community saw the success of the group and now want to join.
Seven years ago we funded the first women’s savings group in Kamuli district, Uganda with $250 raised from family and friends. Now there are seven groups in different villages helping women support themselves.
When I go to Uganda, one of the highlights is visiting the women’s groups and seeing what they have accomplished. Our meetings finish with music and dancing! Not something we do in the U.S. right after a business meeting!
There is extreme material poverty in the Buwudha village, as there is in many rural villages in Uganda. But there is also extreme wealth. There is a wealth of determination, hard work, perseverance, patience, and gratitude.
The women are not sitting and waiting for help. Each day they are doing whatever they can to provide for their families.
Thanks to the support of our donors, we see progress for the women.
The savings groups are one of the ways we are working to break the cycle of poverty. Women who have an income can feed their children and pay their school fees.
With Gratitude,
Mary
P.S. If you’re inspired by these women you can donate to one of their business projects that they are trying to start.
