Women of a Savings Group in Adami Tulu
Awoke cutting the special bread
Last week I had the opportunity to participate in a unique celebration. For those of you who get my newsletters a while ago I mentioned the kickoff of our savings groups. Well these groups are now going full force. We have 15 official groups all organized and headed by women whose children are in our program. Each group has its own bylaws and standard of saving from 1 birr a week to 5 birr a week (remember that one US dollar equals 9.5 birr). Things are going well and I was invited along with some of my co-workers to the official opening celebration for one of the groups. Although they started their group back in December, and have been saving since then, they had a big celebration to kick of their “real” beginning. We ate homemade bread and spinach and partook in a coffee ceremony. It was a happy celebration as the 22 women came together to celebrate the 345 birr that they had saved together. Soon they will begin to give small loans to the members of the group, charging small interest rates. Together they will not only save, but watch their money grow.
