Help that women can bank on
D
o youhavea bankaccount?
Haveyouevertakenouta
businessloanora mortgage?
Formillionsofwomen
aroundtheglobe,suchfinancial
servicesaresimplyoutofreach.Yet
improvingaccesstofinancecould
improvewomen’slivesimmeasurably,
aswellasunlockUS$330bn(£256bn)
inannualglobalrevenue,accordingto
developmentorganisationCare.
ResearchbyCaredocumentsthe
“enormous”economicandsocial
potentialofwomenwhohavebeen
helpedbyCare’sprojectAccess
Approved.Among them is Yeo
Nakoni,51,a vegetable farmer from
KorhogoinIvory Coast. She is a
motherofsixand also takes care
oftwonieces. When her husband
losthisjobasa cook, she became
thefamily’ssole breadwinner.
“Igotmarried at the age of 20 and
usedtosellvegetables at the market
untilmymother-in-law advised me to
growthesevegetables by myself and
sellthemformore profit,” said
Nakoni.“That was a good idea, and
shearrangeda plot of land for me. I’ve
workedthisland now for 35 years, but
it doesn’tbelong to me. In our
communitywomen don’t own land, it
belongstomen.”
Nakoniwent on to establish a
savingsgroup, based on Care’s
VillageSavings and Loans Associationmodel. “Every Sunday we each put in
500 francs and from that we are able
to give each other loans. We repay our
loans with interest, so our fund can
grow. What we can do as a group,
you can’t do by yourself.”
As well as training, Care arranged
for Madam Sekongo, a successful
entrepreneur from the region, to
give motivational talks to Nakoni’s
and other groups. “Thanks to my
fields I have been able to send my
children to school and put food on
the table,” said Nakoni.
“I am optimistic for my future.
I see myself as a woman entrepreneur
who makes decisions and contributes
significantly to the expenses of her
family. I see myself owning a home
in five years and I know I am on the
right track.”FROMAFRICA TO
SOUTHAMERICA, A
PROJECTSHOWS THE
BENEFITS OF INVESTING
INWOMEN’S ECONOMIC
EMPOWERMENTByLUCYPURDYGOOD THINGS
POSITIVE NEWS* FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Proof the
schemes
work: Sri
Lankan
entrepreneur
Sarojini
(above right).
Left: Yeo
NakoniGAZETTE