“It all started in Cangwe, a small town located on the Rukanda hill, where in 2019 AMU supported the launch of small microcredit groups for the economic strengthening of local families. I used to pass by there, and that’s how I learned about the existence of the Savings and Credit groups. Observing how others were doing it, I found the project really interesting. I realized that in our village we were missing an opportunity. That’s how I got the first idea and I talked about it with some friends. From the exchange we decided to start the first savings and loan group in Burishi too.”
Thanks to this small seed, the community has become a “model” in microcredit activities and since 2020 it has been included in the larger project Si può fare! Microcredito e Microfinanza comunità, carried out in 6 provinces of the country. The aim is for the members of the groups to be able to strengthen themselves and access ever greater credit through training and constant support by CASOBU and AMU.
Income-generating activities in this locality revolve mainly around agriculture: cassava and palm oil cultivation, livestock farming and small-scale trading.
“Being together in the savings and credit group has helped us a lot,” Gédéon continues. “The group is an opportunity for us to pool our savings and think about income-generating activities that we can do together, in addition to individual ones.
Our group is called “Turwanyubunebwe”, which means “fight against laziness” in Kirundi language. After ours, five other groups were born in my village. Now, with our savings, we can get credit, run businesses, and provide for our families.”
Through the supervision and support received within the groups, the beneficiaries have understood that they can be the drivers of their own development and are also able to develop new business models.
“There were times when, after saving and giving loans to those who asked for them, there was money left in the fund, so we thought of an idea to keep the money in circulation: to carry out a collective activity. We chose to raise cows, goats, pigs and even sheep, giving the animal in turn to one of the members once purchased.
In this way, the members not only have milk and manure, essential for living and fertilizing the fields, but also finance the other activities of the group itself when the animal is sold. Currently we have a total of 6 cows, 3 pigs, 2 sheep and 1 goat without counting their young”. Gédéon and his team are now thinking about the future and how they can develop other business ideas to support their families while always thinking about the community:
“In time, we would like to acquire a manioc mill. Our dream is to create, thanks to community microcredit, an activity that will be like a legacy for our community, a testimony that speaks of the experience lived in this group.”
