Micro Loans For Women Impacted by HIV/AIDS, Zambia

Happy Mother’s Day! This Mother’s Day give a gift of empowerment to first time women entrepreneurs in Zambia. Your ongoing support is helping create a community of empowered women who are now on the path to self-reliance. 

Goal: Our goal is to empower women by providing them with marketable skills, via business training and loans to start a business, to take better care of their families.

Typical Beneficiaries: Direct beneficiaries are women as they have been disproportionately impacted by the HIV and AIDS epidemic in Africa. In our community of Matero in Zambia, most women have few marketable skills, have never been to school, and may not know how to read or write. They range in age from 35 to 67 years of age, and most are single moms/grandmothers caring for multiple orphaned children/grandchildren.

Typical Businesses: started with loans range from groceries (fruits, cooking oil, eggs, detergent, tea, soft drinks, vegetables, beans, Kapenta (dried fish), fresh fish, mealie meal (a Zambian staple), restaurants, hair salon, cosmetics, used clothing, used shoes, used toys, to Chitenge (Zambian skirts). More recently, a few women have started selling higher value items such as bed sheets, cosmetics, phone covers, prepaid cell phone cards, wedding accessories, jewelry, blankets, floor polish etc.

Short term impact: The provision of business training and loans has resulted in a huge and sustained impact on the 372 families in our program in the following ways:

• The diet and nutrition of all 372 families (about 2600 people) has improved leading to improved health,
• Almost all women have purchased small household items such as pots and pans,
• 112 women purchased larger household items such as TV’s, bedding, chairs etc.  
• Earnings from businesses have enabled 782 children to attend school, and 67 children enrolled in skills training classes such as carpentry, knitting,  
• 253 women (out of 372) have expanded their businesses,
• 277 women have started saving a small amount each week, and 142 have opened bank accounts,
• 48 women purchased cement to extend a room, and six women built shops.

Long term impact: This program is leading to a long term sustained impact via:

• Skills Development: Women learn a variety of business skills that include record keeping (leads to better information on inventory, sales, profits, receivables etc.), and customer service, and operating a bank account.
• Acquire new habits: Women start saving a small amount each week.
• Better knowledge about HIV and malaria: leads to better health and higher earnings.
• Built relationships of mutual support: these are helpful for business success in the long run.
• Change in culture: as men (husbands, sons) support businesses and help with caring for children.
• Quality of life: Women enjoy a higher status in the community as they share their knowledge, become role models, and demonstrate self-reliance.
• Stronger community: The community is better equipped to break out of the vicious circle of poverty and low level of education.

Over the last six years, 334 women out of a total of 656, have graduated from this program. What is remarkable however, is that 70% (244 out of 334) of the businesses are still running in the community. In addition, more than one-third of graduates have made investments in land, shops, and home extensions so they now have a sustained source of income. Loan repayment rates are between 88-92% despite the difficult circumstances faced by most women. Overall, the community is stronger and more self-reliant as families are improving in health, and children are in school.

Thanks for giving the gift of empowement to women in Zambia. 

Links:

• About our micro loans program
• The vision behind our micro loans program
• About the business training provided