STiR coffee and tea magazine

26 STiR coffee and tea | 2024 Issue 5 (October / November) Savings Groups Propagate Income Diversification A savings group formed in Tanzania brought young and old smallholder coffee farmers to- gether to collaborate on income diversification. The Jitegemee Group from the Mbinga District in the Ruvuma Region of Tanzania engaged lo- cal students to help them establish coffee seedling nurseries and increase their productivity under the guidance of the European Union's and Ministry of Agriculture's AGRICONNECT program. In an interview with Vi Agroforestry, members of the Jitegemee Group (which means 'rely on yourself) explained that they "picked this name be- cause all members aim for self-sufficiency through enterprise," says group member Beno. After watching a neighboring youth group learn how to start their own coffee seedling nursery and discov- ering that seedlings are more resistant to pests and diseases than plants from cuttings, the Jitegemee Group was inspired to do the same. They invested their money from the savings group and enlisted the youth group to mentor and guide them through the process. Since compact coffee seedlings are in high demand in southern Tanzania, this has proven to be lucrative. The group also invested in a beekeeping and honey project that brings in additional income. Savings and Internal Lending Communities (SILC) established by the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) in Chiquimula, Guatemala, organized com- munity nurseries that helped the families save enough money to annually renovate approximate- ly 25% of each family's farm, about 0.2 hectares. After four years, the SILC families were able to completely renovate their farms. Another study conducted by CRS in Kenya reported that "Participants took advantage of the lower-cost loans afforded by the SILC to invest in other small businesses, diversifying their cof- fee farms and, therefore, their income sources. The interest on savings for some groups in Kenya reached 40% per year, providing a valuable source of cash at the end of the year." The Longevity of Community VSLAs and other savings groups are about much more than financial stability. They become the beat- ing heart of a community that benefits entire fami- lies and future generations. Husbands, brothers, and sons in the VSLA community begin to reconsider their concept of gender roles. Those households typically experience a shift towards equal sharing of responsibilities and decision-making. "After CARE completed our support in the ar- eas, many groups are still operating," commented Nguyen. "Formed as community-managed mod- els, the members find it useful and successfully carry out the activities on their own. VSLAs func- tion not only as the saving and loan model but as a place where they can share and support each other and develop their sense of belonging." CARE sets up each group using community-based trainers and field fa- cilitators from the local communities, intending for the VSLA to become self-sufficient after five years. "The people who interact with these groups know the people within them, so they know the issues inherent within households," says Sriram. "They'll know if someone has an issue with gender-based violence [GBV] or food security, and they will work with the group and tailor their response to say, 'We should put in some interventions around food security and GBV. We need referral mecha- nisms.' So having 20-25 people come together every week is an opportunity as well to train them on a host of other things and this is why groups continue. The average group is five to eight years old. They continue without us." Catalysts for Change Savings groups and the women in them are catalysts for change. Building a woman's agency, empowering her economically, and connecting her to the val- ue chain and marketplace not only benefits her household and community but also has a lasting impact on the coffee industry itself. An industry that draws from 100% of its talent pool and utilizes 100% of its participants' capabilities is far more likely to succeed than one that hobbles along at 50% capacity. Members of the CARE EMWE VSLA gather for a group picture in Dien Bien province, Vietnam. Photo courtesy Loes Heerink/CARE Savings groups organized by the Catholic Relief Services in Guatemala helped families save enough money to eventually renovate their coffee farms. Photo courtesy Oscar Leiva/Silverlight for Catholic Relief Services

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