On some previous visits with the Acholi community in the past year, I (Helen) have sat with Harriet, Miriam and some of the other women as they have shared their hopes and dreams for setting up small businesses to earn a bit of income in a way that doesn’t include things like breaking up rocks, or collecting plastic bottles from trash heaps. One thought was to set up a soap making business between a small group of them, another pair wanted to make samosas to sell, and another wanted to set up a food stall selling a few different items that together make up the components for a standard meal. A few months back, having discussed business plans with the women and been assured by the group that the ideas were sound, and thanks to some generous donations, I was able to hand over start-up capital to enable these women to embark on their new ventures.
On my most recent visit to Acholi Quarters, I gained some really encouraging feedback about how they are all doing. The soap makers are selling the bars of soap as fast as they can make them, and they are savvy enough to have two prices – a lower price for sales within the AQ community, and a higher price for sales outside to passers-by. The profit that they are making is going into savings, and they are really encouraged by how well things have started. An additional note on this one is that Agnes, who was the driving force behind the venture and who lived on the edge of AQ, had her home bulldozed by city developers just days before they were due to start the soap-making. Not surprisingly she was devastated, as no warning had been given so she had no time to save many belongings. However, the community came together and helped her pick up her life again, and she says that the focus of the soap project really helped her to move forwards. A beautiful example of good coming from a really difficult situation.
The samosas are selling well, and some new women are now involved in the venture after one of the original pair got permanent work in a nearby hotel. So that’s a prayer answered for expansion of the business to support more women. And the food stall is doing good business selling beef (from the heads and hooves of cows rather than the finer cuts), little silver fish, and cassava. Every day they sell most if not all of their stock, and gain enough profit to be able to put into savings to help with school fees etc.
It’s great to hear how things are working out for the women in various ways. Yes they still have very tough lives in many ways, but we rejoice in the positives that they are experiencing, and in the prayers that are being answered.