Self-help Groups for 2000 poor women in S. Africa

At the centre of Sinamandla’s work is the Self-help group (SHG) project which promotes self-help and mutual help at the individual, group and community levels. As 2017 draws to a close we share two inspiring stories of an SHG member and an SHG who are helping themselves and their community.

Mam’ Gumede (not her real name) of Sizamokuhle SHG in Swayimane, KZN, has been an SHG member since February 2012.She cares for four household members and her family were mainly living on social grants before she joined her group. To date she has borrowed 5 SHG loans worth R5,000 (almost $400) from her group towards her income-generating activities. She has a poultry house and farms around 1 100 chickens every 6 weeks. She also farms vegetables and seasonal crops like sweet potatoes, amadumbe and maize on her family land. In addition to this land she has an annual lease on another 2 acres of land which she uses for farming activities along with six other SHG farmers. Mam’ Gumede supplies her chicken and vegetable produce to local supermarkets and learning institutions in nearby towns. She has influenced her group members and community to embrace agriculture as a livelihood strategy and many SHG farmers in her community look to her as their mentor.

Inceboyenkosi SHG in Swayimane, KZN, was formed in May 2010. The group members are engaged in various individual economic activities such as tourism and agriculture activities and they jointly run two social projects; a youth academy and a vulnerable children’s project. In 2015 Inceboyenkosi registered as a Non-Profit Company and has since managed around R450,000 for its social projects. All the members of the group earn monthly stipends for the services they provide in their social projects. During 2017 Inceboyenkosi has been working with 100 orphaned and vulnerable children and through local partnerships has provided full school uniforms to 260 children in 12 primary schools and 3 high schools in Swayimane over the past three years. Inceboyenkosi also provides different lifeskills training activities for the children and care support skills to their caregivers. Inceboyenkosi SHG is supported by Zimele Wethu Foundation, a Sinamandla partner.

Many thanks for your interest in and support of Sinamandla and its work with women in SHGs. Please would you consider a donation to Sinamandla in 2017 which will be greatly appreciated!

You can subscribe to our E-newsletter via the Sinamandla website, like us on Facebook at sinamandlaselfhelpgroup or follow us on Twitter @sinamandlashg. Our SHG book, “Moving ourselves out of poverty”, is available for $40.00 including postage – to order directly from Sinamandla email phil@sinamandla.org.za  

Sinamandla previously conducted research of the Self-help Group (SHG) project in 2010 so new research was a priority in 2017. A local development consultant and her team were contracted to conduct the research between April-June. Amangwe Village were the SHG partner selected to host the research project and Sakhisizwe SHG in Makwezini, a settlement in the uMfolozi Municipality, KZN, were chosen to participate in the research.

The research set out to capture from the SHG members themselves, their families and key community stakeholders what changes being an SHG member has made in terms of the following areas. What changes did it make to family finances and economic wellbeing? What changes did it make to social relationships within the family and community? What changes did it make to their capacity to celebrate life events in accordance with customary practices? What impact did it have on strengthening women’s empowerment? These themes were followed through in a structured group discussion with the SHG and one-on-one interviews with a sample of SHG members, and a group interview with their families. A sample of community stakeholders were also interviewed.

The findings revealed a great deal of positive evidence that being a member of an SHG was a life changing experience at most of the levels outlined above. SHG members and their families shared their journey from dire poverty and unhappiness to gaining new skills in SHG training which enabled them to plan and manage their finances better. They felt also confident about the future. They all shared how neighbourhoods had become happier and more caring since the establishment of the SHG. Stakeholders reinforced this view and some of them had joined the SHG as they saw the progress the members were making and wanted to be a part of vibrant, caring group.

The research report states that “SHG’s are clearly a very effective way of addressing poverty, especially in rural communities where people still embrace traditional lifestyles. Through participation, poor people solve some of the economic problems and are set on a course of more targeted saving and use of available funds. Increased social cohesion, social capital and self-reliance are always additional benefits of well-established SHGs and this impacts on their families and the community and has a snowballing effect which can gain a momentum of its own. SHGs are often involved in local development projects which benefit the wider community.”

“Sinamandla’s model of working with local partners and having in place an ongoing capacity building program ensures the continual expansion of skills and knowledge. Sakhisizwe SHG has been exposed to training covering issues and topics such as HIV/AIDS, child protection, household vegetable production, gender and gender violence etc. The investment Sinamandla and their partners make in SHGs is exceptional, considering the current funding constraints most NGOs face.”

Many thanks for your interest in and support of Sinamandla and its work with women in SHGs. Please would you consider a donation to Sinamandla in 2017 which will be greatly appreciated!

You can subscribe to our E-newsletter via the Sinamandla website, like us on Facebook at sinamandlaselfhelpgroup or follow us on Twitter @sinamandlashg. Our SHG book, “Moving ourselves out of poverty”, is available for $30.00 including postage – to order directly from Sinamandla email info@sinamandla.org.za