Getting Down to Business
Be Free Revolution discusses business opportunities
I’ve been back in Uganda for a month now. Since returning home I have seen a lot of progress being made with my secondary project. Yesterday, I had my first meeting with a second Village Savings and Loan (VSLA) group, this one also comprised mostly of women. Many other individuals in the community have also expressed interest in starting their own VSLA groups because they have heard how successful my first group has been at saving (I don’t have exact figures but my original group has managed to collectively save around $1100 USD in just three months!). I feel pretty confident that I can get between five to ten of these groups started within the next year. The hardest part is getting the group members trained to keep accurate records and be punctual. However, after a few meetings they seem to do pretty well without my assistance. It’s nice to see a project not only become successful, but also sustainable.
Be Free Revolution visits Kinoni Parish
In addition to creating more Village Savings and Loan groups, I have also started a few new projects with my original VSLA group. They have been operating for a couple of months without my assistance, so I have changed my focus from running the VSLA group to helping them start small businesses. While I was home in America for the holidays, I met with a friend from college to discuss possibilities of partnering with an organization she co-founded called Be Free Revolution (http://www.befreerevolution.org). They travel to Kenya and Uganda about four or five times a year to provide economic opportunities to impoverished groups and provide counseling and ministry to individuals affected by rape, abandonment and other terrible circumstances. They were so gracious to take time out of their busy mission trip in late January to come and visit me in Masaka. During their visit, I introduced them to the women of Kamu Kamu Kinoni Women’s Association (the name of my original VSLA group) and allowed them to witness how a VSLA group works firsthand. Afterwards, they discussed the possibility of partnering with my group to make handbags to sell on their website.
Had to cut the hair, it's too damn hot!
About seven women in my group has expressed interest in starting this bag-making business and so far we have had two meetings. Currently, we are researching where to find the best materials locally at the lowest price. We are also in contact with several local tailors to find the best talent at the lowest price. After we get this information compiled, we will decide which tailor will make our first prototype bag. Once the prototype bag is made, I will pitch it to my friends at Be Free Revolution as well as local tourist destinations in Uganda. If we can procure enough orders to break even on costs and start making a profit, we will begin production of the bags on a large scale. The idea is to have all the women in the business borrow from their VSLA group and invest in the business equally. They will manage the affairs of the business and I will assist them with marketing the product. This could become a big endeavor but hopefully with patience and planning, I can reduce their risk and help build something that is both cost-efficient and sustainable. Eventually, we would like to take some of the profits and use them to provide training for some of the women to learn how to sew the bags themselves. That way they can enjoy much higher profits because they won’t have to pay tailors to make the bags anymore.
I'm definitely back in Uganda
School started back a few weeks ago as well. I have lowered my teaching load to a few days a week so I can focus on my secondary project, but I still enjoy teaching S2 students about computers. I found that my school has a projector now so I use it to teach when the power is on (it’s been pretty good so far this year). I’m hoping the other teachers see the benefit of using it and adopt it to their lessons as well. Other than that, I’m just getting used to being back in Uganda again and keeping myself busy. It’s hard to believe that over a year ago I was first arriving to Uganda. I’ve learned and experienced so much during that time. Hopefully the next year in country will teach me even more.
