Women in Zambia

Two of the people in Africa who are paid from your purchases to work helping others are Golden and Dorothy Kayeta. They are shown below with their son Haggai.

Golden and Dorothy both teach in a school that teaches vulnerable and disadvantaged children. In addition to their teaching work, they also put together and coach groups of women to earn income through small businesses that they work with each other on. They call these groups of women self-help groups.

The women in these self-help groups each save up very small amounts of money which they give to one of their members to start a business. The first profits from this business are then used to pay back the loan from the group. Then there is money for another of the women to start a small business with.

These self-help groups have been very effective for women in Africa trying to escape poverty. Normally there are  no outside donations to groups like this. During these coronavirus times there have been some very difficult and exceptional circumstances. There are over 100 self-help groups that Golden and Dorothy watch over. Last month we sent some extra money to help 10 of these groups get through some of the losses during these difficult times. 

Here is what Golden wrote to us about this.

"Each group receives k1500 (about $90.00) to boost up their savings as they are working together to support one another. Their families will also benefit from this donation while it is used to strengthen the groups. 124 women will benefit. 

We have seen women who were nothing in the community become someone. People in the community start learning from them. They think they have nothing to offer, but self help group is teaching them on how they can survive from the little they have by doing some small business. We have seen it helping them so much."  

Below are photos of three of these groups of women.

Golden also sent along this store of Estella who recently joined one of the self help groups.

"Estella has 5 children, and is married to a man who has 4 wives. She is the first wife to her husband, but does not enjoy her marriage because her husband doesn’t spend enough time for her because of the other wives. Her husband also does not provide food and school fees for the children. When he has money, he gives the other wives and left Estella and children with nothing.

When we introduced self-help group in her village she joined and she started attending the lessons that we are teaching. Through the lessons in the self-help group she is now able to work hard and does not need to depend on her husband. Through the business she is now able to provide food for her family and send them to school on her own through the savings and small business that she doing. She is now an example in the community, and she is living a life of trusting God in everything that she is doing. She says “I can do all things through him who gives me strength.”

One of the biggest privileges you and we both have in life is being able to make a difference in the lives of other people this way. Because of what you and Golden and we can do together this way, these women are getting the help they need to start a much better life.