Invest in Small Businesses for Girls in Kenya

Seed of Hope's Class of 2013 has now graduated. There were colourful ceremonies at our four centres and it was wonderful to see how much the event meant not just to the graduates but to their families' as well. Parents, guardians and siblings were keen to celebrate the occasion and be photographed with the graduates as they received their certificates,

Now it is time for the graduates to move on to the next stage of their lives and face the realities of the world. Gitau is a teacher in Enterprise studies at the Nairobi centre and helps to oversee the set up of Roots businesses at all four centres. He gave us this report:

"The Seed of Hope policy for students after the two years course is to either join a Roots business or get employed in their field of expertise. After the 2013 graduation, 9 small businesses will be set up for girls who have completed the programme of training.

Three months before graduation each group was required to come up with a business plan that will equip them for starting their business. The plan uses the principle of the ladder. That is starting with the first workable goal going up. Within the plan Seed of hope gives the groups machines, three months rent and one year trading license as a start up capital.

In each graduation there were Government leaders, Vision Africa staff, donors, community leaders, Seed of hope board members, parents and teachers who gave the graduates words of encouragements. Here are some of the quotes.

• Mr. Elisha from the BOO that sponsors Seed of hope Nyamache. He told the graduates that if they want to succeed in business self discipline has to be there, also they need to believe in themselves and say inside their heart that if A can do it why not B.
• Mrs Deborah Kimathi, Vision Africa Field Director, told them that in order for them to succeed they have to start small and move up one step at a time. She also talked to them about mastered seed or any other seed and the process it goes through until it becomes a very big tree.
• Madam Mwikali the Seed of Hope Chairlady told the graduates that doing business needs somebody with self confidence she gave an example of Mariam Mohamed a graduate who gave her speech with a lot of confidence.
• Teacher Margaret read for them a verse from the bible that says that God has good plans for each and every one of us and therefore they should not fear because in everything they do God will always be there.
• A county representative while giving them a word of encouragement demonstrated with her own dress the kind fashion is in the market. She said she was very impressed by the graduates’ work.
• A community leader said she was so much impressed and happy because some of the girl who completed the course where from her area. She promised to bring more needy children."

The girls that we work with face a variety of challenges and Teacher Gitau and his colleagues are always on hand to support and advise them as they make the transition from student to employee or business owner. Seed of Hope is sensitive to the girls' circumstances and allows for flexibility, As an example of this, we have an update to our last post on the business that was being set up by Phoebe, Salome and Roselyn. 

Salome's circumstances changed and she had to leave Nairobi to live with her sister in their rural home. This changed the dynamics of their business plan. Then Phoebe and Roselyn were offered places in Seed of Hope's new Incubation Hub which will be set up early next year. The Hub will give additional support to promising graduates as they set up their businesses. Located on site at Seed of Hope, the Hub will offer mentoring, specialised training and work experience for residents. While Roselyn felt that Hub membership is the best option for her, Phoebe decided she wanted to start out on her own immediately. So plans are afoot to ensure that the girls get the support they require to ensure that they all succeed.

Thank you for the support that YOU have given our girls through GlobalGiving. Your contributions have made it possible for us to ensure that every student graduating in 2013 and wishing to join the Roots programme has the opportunity to do so.