40-year-old Selina Mateso, mother to 7 children two of who have disabilities, has been a member of Maendeleo Self Help Group, an organization for persons with disabilities and their caregivers in Ganze Sub County, Kilifi County, for 3 years. She is in the group as a caregiver. Selina’s group is among 28 such groups in Kilifi County who are currently reaping benefits from capacity building on the Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) approach. She has been able to take a number of loans from the group’s pooled funds, invest in maize farming, make profits from the harvest which she has used to repay the loans, educate and take care of her children and other household expenses. This is part of an initiative by Basic Needs Basic Rights Kenya in collaboration with CBM Global to spur meaningful participation by persons with disabilities in community life through socio-economic empowerment. The initiative has been funded by Irish Aid. Photo by BNBR. Selina is happy to share her story:

Our group was formed out of the need to forge unity

Maendeleo Self Help Group for persons with disabilities was formed as a way of strengthening and uniting persons with disabilities to unshackle themselves from poverty through promoting self-reliance.

Before formation of this group, there was disunity and lack of cooperation among persons with disabilities in this locality and this made life more challenging for us because it was more difficult to engage in livelihood activities as individuals. This was further compounded by the fact that we received little or no support from the government social protection mechanisms.

Through this program, we have been capacity built on the VSLA model where we were taught on the benefits of saving, as this enabled us to build a kitty where members could take loans, invest in various income generating ventures or even take care of their pressing household expenditure needs, and repay the loan to enable other members to also access funds. Paying back the loan with a small interest also helps grow our kitty.

Our success is dependent on our members showing commitment to the process

For this VSLA model to be sustained, each member of the group has the option of purchasing shares based on their capacity. For instance, one share goes for Ksh100, and each member is required to get a minimum of 5 shares. The amount of shares a member has determines the share of dividend they will get at the end of the year when we share out the kitty.

All our members come from a low-income background, and this was the main selling point to embracing the group approach. The reality is that if I make Ksh100 a day, this is nowhere near sufficient to cater for the daily expenses of my household or even invest in any venture. However, if I and other members invest the Ksh100 weekly in this group thus pooling our funds, we are able to access loans through this kitty. This way, we have access to substantial funds to invest in various ventures.

When our group was starting out, we were not very committed to saving however, courtesy of this program, we were motivated by the fact that the program committed to give us a seed grant matching what we had in our kitty. We therefore received a seed grant of Ksh25,000 bringing our total to Ksh50,000. I am happy to report that as at the close of the year, our kitty had grown to Ksh200,000 through interest earned from loan repayments and members increasing their shares.

I have been able to more than double my income from investments

Personally, I have taken loans multiple times. I first took a loan of Ksh50,000 which I invested in maize farming. I leased a 5-acre piece of land, hired an ox plough and sowed the maize seeds. Though the soil quality wasn’t very good, I was still able to harvest 25 bags of maize of 90kgs each. If I had manure, pesticides and so on, I know I would have harvested more.

I sold each bag at about Ksh5,500 repaid the loan and again borrowed Ksh80,000 which I re-invested in maize farming. The second time around, I harvested 30 bags of maize which I am currently in the process of selling. I only have 10 bags left in my store, but I already have a buyer for them.

The profit I am getting from this maize farming venture has enabled me to pay school fees for my children and take care of other household expenses.

A huge burden has been lifted from my life

I must admit that this program has been quite a relief for me. I recall how in the past, when I was not part of a group, my life was a struggle. Every time I would think of my children’s school fees and other household expenses, I would get so stressed out. Right now, all my children, including those with disabilities are well taken care of, their school fees are paid, they are well dressed, and they have good accommodation.

My advice to other community members who are yet to join a self-help group for persons with disabilities and their caregivers, is to use me as a testimony. I am good example of the benefits that come with being a member of such a group. I have been able to apply all the teachings I have received, and I am reaping the benefits. I know they will also do the same if they show commitment.