Micro-Loans: a determined journey out of poverty

Fanice Maiba, 2010In 2010, 15 families were selected to journey together as the Village of Love.  They were amongst the poorest of the poor in Kibera, and all qualified because they were committed to continue raising the orphaned children they had taken in.

All needed emergency food, their income was so small! Before there was any money for loans, they practiced saving and group responsibility through table banking, where each woman placed on the table a very tiny amount of money each week, which they took turns to borrow for emergencies, making group decisions as to who was the most deserving.

Finally, micro-loan money became available through  Village of Love Canada. Each woman had some small business whereby she eked out a living: collecting and selling firewood, selling a few vegetables or fruit, maybe knick knacks.

Fanice Maiba 2013Their starter loans were only $40.  Even this small amount was considered to be too much by some social workers who scorned this effort to apply micro-loans with such desperately poor people. But Leonora Obara had faith in them. She believed they could learn to save, and to use their loans to increase their incomes.

With workshops and volunteer help, little by little, incomes increased. Those who had been able to keep their children in school by dividing a pencil and notebook into 5 pieces, were able to provide a whole notebook and pencil for each child. Those who had been sending their children to school with a cup of warm water in their stomachs, were able to give them also a slice of bread.

Village of Love Women listen intently to the loan options being place before themThe determination and patience of these women has been remarkable! Over the years, as they pay back their loans, they qualify for a slightly larger loan. Some are borrowing as much as $150 now. The time has come to consider even larger loans to boost their income generating capacity, to truly enable them to be self sufficient in sending their children to school. Providing school supplies for primary school children is one thing, but to find $500 for each child for secondary school is quite another challenge. Can they do it?

On Sunday, July 27th, Village of Love  held a focus group to explore the use of much larger loans to provide better for the children’s needs. They invited an officer from SISDO micro-finance group to speak to them about the benefits of taking substantial loans to boost businesses. Now they must decide!