“ I am proud to be part of a team working to support our local communities of women to overcome the challenges they face. What makes me particularly passionate about this work is rooted in my childhood where my family experienced similar challenges....”
– Patrick
My core role includes conducting trainings for our women farmer groups as well as the formation and strengthening of women Village Saving and Loan Associations (VSLA). I am proud to be part of a team working to support our local communities of women to overcome the challenges they face. What makes me particularly passionate about this work is rooted in my childhood where my family experienced similar challenges. It is such a privilege to observe the impact of the work we have been doing over the past couple of years. I am humbled and thankful for the opportunity to serve our communities. These local communities have whole-heartedly embraced the methodologies and technologies we share with them and are applying and implementing the lessons learned from all the capacity building sessions we have conducted.
As part of the team working to build WNSP’s capacity since 2010 we continue to hone our effectiveness in designing, organizing and implementing our community development programs. We are thrilled to integrate our ongoing knowledge and skills in transformational development, motivating justifiable change and sustainable development approaches into all of our current programs.
Our core guiding principle: women’s socio-economic empowerment is a prerequisite for overall community development
By empowering women economically through the VSLA vehicle, we have seen improved livelihoods at the household level across all the groups we work with.
The inclusion of women in economic activities has tremendously strengthened their position in their communities and households. The stimulation of women entrepreneurship practice and commercializing of their kitchen garden farms has enabled them to contribute to household development. The women we work with through our agricultural and entrepreneurial programs have reported that they were able to start up poultry and livestock farms for economic growth; have acquired household assets such as sewing machines, furniture, beds, bicycles and radios; have built better houses; are able to provide sufficient and more nutritious food for their families; and are paying for medical bills and school fees. As a result, women have gained more respect and are increasingly being included in decision making in their households and at the community level. Since inception in 2010 until now, we have been able to work with a total of 31 women groups with each group comprising approximately 30 members. The need for our programs is great and we have much work to do to reach all of our communities with these resources and tools. This work hasn’t been easy, we encounter challenges on a daily basis, but we persevere for the great impact it has on empowerment of women.
I have seen women begin to earn money through the income-generating activities which the VSLA enables, they are able to contribute financially to the household – many for the first time. They do not have to entirely depend on their husbands’ or get permission to spend money. With income that they have worked for through their own efforts and new skills, women’s opinions are increasingly being valued in their families on key matters such as planning/allocation of resources, nutrition, children’s health, and education. When this happens in a family the overall health and wellbeing of everyone is raised to new levels.
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