It all started with a small loan. Abwono Milly is a member of one of Invisible Children Uganda’s Village Savings and Loan Associations, and she recently started up her own business with a loan she took from the group.
Milly took a loan (about $3), added it to some of her personal savings (about $2), and used that $5 to buy two basins of seeds used for producing cooking oil.
It took much of the day to process the seeds into oil. First Milly dried the seeds. Then she fried them over an open fire. When they were ready, she took them off the fire and pounded them. Then grinded them. Then she put them back on the fire. As the heat permeated the paste, the oil rose to the surface ready for bottling.
Milly sold the six bottles of oil she made for $36. She was able to pay back the loan with $1 in interest, leaving her with $30 of profit.
A typical day for Milly starts early as she heads to her garden to work. By 9:00, she takes her place at the roadside market where she sells her oil and other fruits that are in season. Most of the other ladies working at the roadside stands are also part of VSLA groups.
“We are good friends,” Milly says.
After a full day’s work selling to the passengers of large buses and other customers that stop along the road, Milly heads home to make dinner for her four children. Milly is proud of her ability to make a profit with her business, and is using the money she earns to pay for all four of her children to be in school.
Milly sells the oil she made at the roadside market.
The Functional Adult Literacy and Village Savings and Loan Associations programs are made possible by Fourth Estate members who give generously on a monthly basis to advance and sustain these programs. Become a member!
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