Jane was one of the first people to receive a loan
from the Missing Link Microfinance project when it launched in the summer of
2016. Based out of the house of John’s dad, in Bakijjulula near Mityana, where
the Nkuru Vocational Training College is now being developed, the microfinance
scheme is going from strength to strength, empowering individuals to pursue
hopes and dreams in a variety of income-generating ways.
Jane’s story is one such case.
Mother of five children, all primary age or below,
Jane lives with her husband, Sempijja, in a very simple two-room house made of
brick and plaster walls, and a tin roof. When she got her microfinance loan,
the first thing she did was buy two pigs, and some chickens. From that she was
able to sell eggs, and piglets, and soon the loan had been repaid.
The pigs and chickens continued to serve her and
the family well, thanks to her diligence in making sure she knew how to look
after them properly, and get the best output from them. After careful budgeting
and diligent saving Jane and her husband reached the stage where they could
invest in the next stage of their plans to reduce expenditure: rainwater
harvesting.
By investing in guttering and a water tank, and
making sure the roof was in good shape, they now have water on tap, rather than
having to either walk a considerable way to get water from the borehole (and in
so doing using time that then can’t be spent doing other tasks), or pay someone
to go and get the water for them.
But that wasn’t the end of ‘pig and chicken’
microfinance success story. Following more careful saving and good budgeting,
and a microfinance loan taken out by her husband, the family now have a small
solar panel on their roof, which, thanks to the intensity of the Ugandan sun,
produces enough power each day to light up their evenings with solar-powered
light bulbs, and also has enabled them to buy a television. No more kerosene lamps for this family, insights
into the world beyond through the ability to watch television and another bill now
a thing of the past.
The most recent new enterprise has been to buy some
rabbits and start breeding them for sale as a food item. With just one breeding
pair to start them off, the speed at which they are reproducing, combined with
Jane’s diligence in getting the most out of every task that she takes on means
that they will soon have the new loan paid off, and even more money coming into
the family.
The story of Jane and Sempijja and how they have
made such wonderful use of the head start that the microfinance gave them is
really great to hear, and see in action. It is proof that for many it’s not
about the handouts, and the waiting for people to do everything for them; it’s
about the hand ups, and just being given the opportunity to make big inroads into
turning their own lives around,
For them it doesn’t mean upgrading the house,
splashing out on lots of unnecessary extras, or getting caught up in
materialistic pressures, but it does mean that they will fulfill their dream of
having enough to put the children through school, and maybe even university
when the time comes.
Long may those opportunities continue to come into
being.
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