Women Empowerment for Sustainable Development

Dear Project Supporters, 

During this quarter we have focused on Village Savings and Loan Scale-up Scheme aims at improving the business and knowledge skills of beneficiaries. Aspire Rwanda is also working to link VSL these groups with the formal financial sector like banking institutions in Rwanda through similar projects. The main objective of Aspire’s VSL Scale-up project is to improve the livelihood options, social capital, and financial capabilities of poor women by facilitating their inclusion in VSL groups. Additionally, VSL provides the women cooperative members with a safe place to save their money, to access loans and to obtain emergency insurance. Governance and management is entirely by members and its one way of empowering and improving on their leadership capacity. The strength behind the VSL methodology is that it encourages a culture of saving among members who are required to save weekly by buying shares ranging from one to five, Members can then borrow from the VSLA using their savings as collateral without necessarily having to sell their property or pig at a cheap price in times of need or emergencies. It is through such systems that during this quarter we have witnessed a great change within these households’ standards that have improved through the saving schemes, whereby a coin they drop per month once added up together, it contributes to a new mattress for a member plus also settling other domestic requirements/needs.

We welcome your continued support in making a difference in the lives of more women.  We encourage you to donate monthly here. Even a few dollars a month will go a long way. Please also share this with your contacts and invite them to consider supporting this ongoing project.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email us at aspirerwanda@gmail.com or rshyaka@aspirerwanda.org

With great appreciation,