It only takes a spark, to get a fire going…
And sometimes all it takes is one person…Dona Cristina. Back sometime last year, I met with “Mae Presidente” (President’s spouse—the wife of the president of the denomination) to talk about savings groups. She had heard that I was working with savings groups and wanted to know more about them. We talked for about an hour. Unbeknownst to me, she loved the idea and on her own, went all over Manica and Sofala provinces, talking up the idea to Women’s Societies of the United Church of Christ. She visited churches out in the bush, where the only way to reach them is via canoe. She visited churches where she had to take numerous chapas. Two months later, she called me and said that she had 8 groups already formed and several more interested, would I be willing to come talk with them to help them organize? I was completely astonished and overwhelmed. So we decided to hold a training where we could train someone from each group in how to organize a savings group.
We held the training in Beira in August. We asked someone from Food for the Hungry, which has been organizing savings groups in Mozambique for several years, to do the training. At the training, we had 26 participants from communities where she had visited. It took place over two days and the women (and a few men) learned about how to organize savings groups. We did a simulation game both days where people saved beans (the monetary unit), performed the duties of president, secretary, treasurer and financial agents in a mock meeting. They had a good laugh when we pulled out name tags for each office and made them wear them around their necks. The trainer also had little games in between sessions to keep their energy. At the end of the two days, participants went home with practical ways to begin savings groups in their communities as well as knowing other people with similar training.
In October, we at MCC sat down with Dona Cristina to mark out next steps. She and several other women had formed a committee to give oversight to the project within the Women’s Society of the United Church of Christ. They designed three trips to visit 12 groups. Each trip, they delivered a wooden box to the group to guard their funds. In November, December and January they visited all the groups.
Last week I met with Dona Cristina and her colleagues about their trips and plans for the future. They are so excited about the project and told some really cool stories…one group they couldn’t get to because of the rains (which ordinarily is accessible via a 3-hour canoe ride), so the group walked to see them. Another group spawned two other groups and one of those groups walked 30 one way just to borrow a booklet that describes how to do savings groups. It was really neat to see the eyes of the women who accompanied Dona Cristina on her trips. I could tell they gained confidence in themselves through these trips. Their eyes lit up when they talked about how the groups are working.
When I read the report of their trips, I found out more about the new groups. They have a total of 249 members in their groups, 213 women and 36 men. At the time of the visits, they have saved 3161 meticais in their social funds ($131 USD) and 53,044 meticais in savings ($2,210 USD). Groups gave themselves different names, including: Kubesana (Mutual Assistance), Kuzwirana (Understanding), Kubatsirana (Mutual Assistance),Uniaao faz forca (Unity makes strength), Runyararo (Peace), and Kwaeja (The sun rose). One group has plans to work with disadvantaged children in their community by purchasing school supplies and flip-flops for them.
The directional committee gave me a proposal that looks pretty good for this coming year, where they’ll keep visiting groups and then host several other seminars to train others. It’s amazing how it’s growing, all because of one woman, seeing how it could help women in her church.
And sometimes all it takes is one person…Dona Cristina. Back sometime last year, I met with “Mae Presidente” (President’s spouse—the wife of the president of the denomination) to talk about savings groups. She had heard that I was working with savings groups and wanted to know more about them. We talked for about an hour. Unbeknownst to me, she loved the idea and on her own, went all over Manica and Sofala provinces, talking up the idea to Women’s Societies of the United Church of Christ. She visited churches out in the bush, where the only way to reach them is via canoe. She visited churches where she had to take numerous chapas. Two months later, she called me and said that she had 8 groups already formed and several more interested, would I be willing to come talk with them to help them organize? I was completely astonished and overwhelmed. So we decided to hold a training where we could train someone from each group in how to organize a savings group.
We held the training in Beira in August. We asked someone from Food for the Hungry, which has been organizing savings groups in Mozambique for several years, to do the training. At the training, we had 26 participants from communities where she had visited. It took place over two days and the women (and a few men) learned about how to organize savings groups. We did a simulation game both days where people saved beans (the monetary unit), performed the duties of president, secretary, treasurer and financial agents in a mock meeting. They had a good laugh when we pulled out name tags for each office and made them wear them around their necks. The trainer also had little games in between sessions to keep their energy. At the end of the two days, participants went home with practical ways to begin savings groups in their communities as well as knowing other people with similar training.In October, we at MCC sat down with Dona Cristina to mark out next steps. She and several other women had formed a committee to give oversight to the project within the Women’s Society of the United Church of Christ. They designed three trips to visit 12 groups. Each trip, they delivered a wooden box to the group to guard their funds. In November, December and January they visited all the groups.
Last week I met with Dona Cristina and her colleagues about their trips and plans for the future. They are so excited about the project and told some really cool stories…one group they couldn’t get to because of the rains (which ordinarily is accessible via a 3-hour canoe ride), so the group walked to see them. Another group spawned two other groups and one of those groups walked 30 one way just to borrow a booklet that describes how to do savings groups. It was really neat to see the eyes of the women who accompanied Dona Cristina on her trips. I could tell they gained confidence in themselves through these trips. Their eyes lit up when they talked about how the groups are working.
When I read the report of their trips, I found out more about the new groups. They have a total of 249 members in their groups, 213 women and 36 men. At the time of the visits, they have saved 3161 meticais in their social funds ($131 USD) and 53,044 meticais in savings ($2,210 USD). Groups gave themselves different names, including: Kubesana (Mutual Assistance), Kuzwirana (Understanding), Kubatsirana (Mutual Assistance),Uniaao faz forca (Unity makes strength), Runyararo (Peace), and Kwaeja (The sun rose). One group has plans to work with disadvantaged children in their community by purchasing school supplies and flip-flops for them.
The directional committee gave me a proposal that looks pretty good for this coming year, where they’ll keep visiting groups and then host several other seminars to train others. It’s amazing how it’s growing, all because of one woman, seeing how it could help women in her church. (Photos: top--simulation game; bottom--training participants. Dona Cristina is the woman in the blue next to me at the top of the group.)
1 comment:
That is so cool!!! Good work, Jenny.-ME
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