By Dr Mike Calvert, York St John University, UK with help from Mary Kiguru from the Sujali Self-Help Group
To see all posts about the group and their work with microcredits, click here
The original group of Susan, Alice, Jacinta and Eunice are into their third cycle of lending and are doing well. They are a hard act to follow.
Alice continues to diversify and grow. Her 1500 chickens have increased to over 2000 (with another thousand planned). She has a very high turnover of eggs as well as broilers and she sells the waste produce as manure and her two goats have both had twins! She pays someone to look after her chickens and is keen to diversify further.
Eunice is seeing business pick up. She continues to provide work for her old employees and, depending on the complexity of the pattern, she can make up two or three garments a day although it has to be said that she works 14 hours per day from 7am to 9pm. She has four children, one at university and one about to go to college and two a lot younger.
Jacinta has built a cowshed with her loan (for Daisy who is expecting in March) and a kitchen behind the hotel (cafe). She has further plans for expansion. Steve, her husband, reports that things are much easier now and that careful expansion is the order of the day.
Susan’s shop continues to increase its stock and continues to employ Milka, a relative.
Current exchange rate is approximately £1 = KES140 $1 = KES90 €1 = KES110