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THE EMPOWERED BUSINESSWOM In May, Faith Kroeker Maus, Programme Advisor for Sustainable Livelihood Development, visited Tanzania to visit The Salvation Army’s micro-finance programme and meet with some of the women benefiting from this support.
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Some of the group, like Salima, make their money through tailoring.
icro-finance brings respect to women, because husbands now understand how much women can contribute to the household,’ a young woman said with a smile. The room full of brightly-clad women erupted in enthusiastic applause and affirming murmurs. Encouraged, she continued: ‘Before joining a solidarity group, the situation at home with my husband was very bad. We were always fighting. Now we have peace because I am able to save for the whole month and not ask the man for any money. I can support my family myself.’ We were sitting in a Salvation Army church in western Tanzania in the isolated town of Tabora, holding a public discussion with women who had received loans through The Salvation Army’s microfinance programme there. My journey to meet with these women had been long and tiring – a two-hour flight from Dar es Salaam to Mwanza, a four-hour drive to Kahama and, the following day, a four-and-a-halfhour drive on dirt roads to Tabora. The road to Tabora was dotted with herds of donkeys, goats and cows, brilliant birds, scampering monkeys, and even a lone hyena sauntering across the road. The businesswomen in front of me were some of the poorest of the poor who had presented business plans and qualified for small loans from The Salvation Army. Each was part of a five-member solidarity group,
which was mutually accountable if any member were to default on her loan. Individual women started with a loan of 100,000 TZ Shillings (around £40) to be repaid over four months. Over the next two years women could qualify for larger loan amounts with extended repayment periods if all members of their solidarity group successfully had repaid the previous loan. This programme differs from many other microfinance schemes. First, it has a very low interest rate of 16 per cent compared to the average rate of around 25 per cent. The low rate ensures that the programme reaches the poorest and most vulnerable, but this also means that the programme relies on funds from outside to cover administration costs. Second, the programme teaches the importance of savings, and requires that each woman save at least 20 per cent of her loan. Finally, many choose to join The Salvation Army’s programme rather than others because it offers quality training on entrepreneurship, market research, business expansion, basic literacy and technical skills. The impact is tangible. Women have expanded their businesses through increased capital and improved management skills. As I visited their businesses, the borrowers proudly showed me how they had diversified their products and sought out new markets. They praised their solidarity groups as sources of
You can shift the balance of inequality that continues to hold women back all over the world. Most of our GENERATION projects focus on the empowerment of women, so by supporting GENERATION you are also supporting the fight for gender equality . Visit www.salvationarmy.org.uk/generation to find out how you can help shift the balance and help people work their own way out of poverty, or fill in and return the form at the back of this magazine with a donation for GENERATION. Martha selling mobile phone credit in the market.