Help Build a Community Centre at St Martins School

Greetings from St Martins School and the Kibagare community.

It is our hope that all is well on your side despite the many challenges we are facing on a day-to-day basis. Glad we all are still here trying to make every moment count.

 We have continued to work with the community here and it has not been an easy ride due to the inflation, high cost of food the drought and the high cost of doing business, and the reduced or no incomes for most of the community members.

We are still raising funds for the creation of a safe space where the mothers can meet. The lack of space has not discouraged them to have their regular weekly meetings. They are still using our school garage as a meeting point for their meetings.

The number of members meeting on a regular has gone down slightly due to the fact that many have opted to look for casual jobs while still finding ways to meet and in the event, they are unable to, they have ways to see to it that they meet their set obligations expected of them by their other members.

In the months of January and February this month, a total of 271 members were able to attend their weekly meetings. The main focus of the group meetings was

1. Voluntary savings and loanings. On this 16 groups are currently in Voluntary loanings and savings groups. They have been able to make their weekly contributions. 80% of the group members have been able to get small loans to boost their businesses and support their families.
2. We have had training on financial literacy and gender inclusion. on this 105 parents from the community were trained on the knowledge and skill needed to manage their little funds and also save a little for emergencies and their future.
3. Training on record keeping has been conducted to enhance efficiency and also encourage accountability and clear insights on the businesses they are engaging in.
4. We are also trying to change the mindset around the weekly meeting, this is to help members understand that the idea behind the meeting is beyond their weekly contributions. It is more of an avenue for them to work in groups against the many challenges they face on a daily basis. Through these groups, they are able to encourage each other and also look out and encourage themselves that they have what it takes to change their situation.

We continue to work with the community and we hope through our interventions and we hope with the help we will receive in helping to build a community center we will be in a better position to offer more interventions for the community here.

Thank you and best regards.

Alfred Aswani

Links:

• School Website
• Community Website