Support Families in Mexico to Start Saving

“In our town, we feel like we are radiating light.” 

This is what Minerva, a Community Savings Group member from Puebla, México, recently shared with us. She was explaining that she was part of a small group who, over two years ago, originally received savings groups and financial education training from Philanthropiece AC. She says that now they share what they learned, and the tools, with others. Minerva shared, “This overall is supporting to unite us so that we can move forward together.”

Based in a community on the outskirts of Puebla, México, Grupo Yasen is made up of a collective of women artisans who are dedicated to making and selling burnished clay pottery, a traditional form of artwork inherited from their ancestors. Three members of the group, Iliana, Ortenzia, and Minerva, shared that the savings group has helped them to advance individually and, most importantly, collectively. 

Starting their group a little over two years ago with six members, they have now grown to a group of 18 members who work together to save and make fair loans to one another to both grow their business and support their families. Iliana shared, “While we had tried previously to save together, we lacked the leadership and management skills to do so.” With carefully designed workshops focused on forming a group, defining roles and responsibilities, and following an intentional method, Philanthropiece AC offered them the education needed to successfully form and initiate. 

The workshops helped Grupo Yasen to determine their savings goals and to learn how to make fair loans to one another. The latter, in particular, helped to resolve a difficult challenge that they had in relation to growing their collective artisan business. Prior to forming the savings group, they were dependent on outside moneylenders or formal banks for loans; both of which charged excessive interest rates, making the loans impossible to repay. The first loan that the group made was to a fellow member-artisan to allow her to travel to another community to sell her artwork; the loan was for $7000MXN (about $350USD). Orteniza explained, “We charged a fair and minimal interest rate, made the loan accessible, and the member was able to repay promptly, and the interest payments stayed within our group.”

The members of Grupo Yasen report that their group helps their community as a whole, as well. For example, they were able to make a loan to a community member who had an urgent need to repair their home. They also share their experience and education with others, spurring other community savings groups to form spontaneously (i.e. without the formal training of Philanthropiece AC). Minerva shared, “Philanthropiece taught us, and now we can share the value of savings and of lending to one another with others. We learned how to care for each other, for our savings, for the group…we now teach other communities how to replicate this.” 

The vision of Philanthropiece AC is to support communities to become cohesive, resilient, and have the capacity for self-management, generating their own opportunities for economic and community development. Thanks to the incredible support from champions like you all, we are beginning to see this vision become a reality. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for believing in the work of creating a better world!

Links:

• Visit Yasen Artesania's Facebook Page