By Louise | Managing Director
AVUXENI! MINJANE? UMFEKILE MINJANI!
What a fabulous day we had last Friday 7th of November, it was SHG day! A time when the groups came together to celebrate their achievements and to be awarded different trophies according to the criteria established by the CLA (Cluster Level Association).
The CLA organized the venue, sound, and photographer, each group organized their own food and drinks, and my team were asked to be the Master of Ceremony for the occasion. In typical African style, many groups did not RSVP and so 30% were left outside the community hall….! Many came late; Africa time is a real thing, and so were left outside and missed the opening ceremony and the dancing.
The day was punctuated by many ululations and clapping, yelling and loud, VERY LOUD music. I was honoured to be given the opportunity to bring a word of encouragement to the group. In all we now have 10 CLA’s and 115 SHG’s. This means we are working with
Next year we are aiming to open a Federation, the final tier to the SHG program where the ladies organize into an advocacy and political organization to bring structural change to the District/Province.
This whole program is making fundamental changes to families and communities. These women are growing in capacity and self-esteem. They are no longer treated badly by their communities for being poor. They are realising their power and authority through this project and the ceiling in their personal lives is lifting as are their dreams.
Below is the story of Sophia, a granny who you have directly supported. You are bringing such joy and hope with every cent.
Thank you for being apart of Sophia’s journey and ours.
Blessings
Louise
Sophia is a 67-year-old member of the Nhlawuleko Self-Help Group (SHG) in Dan Village. She has four children, three boys and one girl—and is a grandmother to twelve grandchildren. Currently, she lives with one of her sons, his wife, and their three children. Sophia's husband passed away a decade ago, leaving her to raise her family on her own. They reside in a small RDP (Rural Development Project) house, which is insufficient for the entire family's needs.
Sophia is an athletic person and belongs to a soccer group for older women, which she enjoys immensely. However, before joining the SHG, she had to set aside her love for soccer. Her son works at a local packhouse, while her daughter-in-law is unemployed, and the three grandchildren are in school—two in primary school and one in early childhood development. The family had to rely primarily on her son’s salary and her SASSA pension grant, which were often inadequate as the children were growing and needed new clothes more frequently. Additionally, her passion for soccer added financial strain to the family.
After the covid hard lockdown, when soccer practice resumed, Sophia was unable to return due to a lack of funds for transportation and training shoes. The soccer field where she trains is quite far from her home, requiring her to take a taxi to get there. She felt she had to pause her passion for soccer to help her son support the family.
In 2024, she learned about a new program in her community and was initially skeptical, thinking it was just “Serf” rebranded (a type of savings group already known in the community). The group's formation prompted her to wait before joining until one of the members explained the details. Encouraged, she decided to give it a try and was pleasantly surprised by what she discovered. "The SHG has a lot of money," she said. "I was shocked that every week there is money available, cash on hand, savings, loan repayments, and sometimes even fines."
When she joined, her first loan was R50, which she used to buy bread and eggs for her grandchildren. She soon returned for additional loans, gradually increasing her borrowing, which caused her some worry about repayment since her grant was the main source of household income. However, one of the group leaders provided training on business management, which inspired Sophia to recall how her mother taught her to cook peanuts. She took a loan of R100, purchased a packet of peanuts, cooked them, and began selling them. To her delight, the peanuts sold out within days, allowing her to buy a larger supply. From that initial R100 investment, she made a profit of R70 and later taught her daughter-in-law how to help run the business.
With a huge smile, Sophia shares that by June 2025, she was able to return to playing soccer, which brought purpose and joy back into her life. She felt happier, as she was finally doing what she loved without the constant worry of financial strain. Recently, she even traveled to Johannesburg for a soccer event and enjoyed her first experience sleeping in a hotel. It was such a novelty for her that she insisted on making her own bed, laughing as she recounted the story.
Thanks to the SHG, Sophia is now living her best life. She no longer worries about how to cover taxi fares for practice, as her business generates income every day. Her biggest loan to date is R1,500, which she used partly for soccer-related expenses and partly to invest in her business.
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