Olive joined her Village Savings and Loan (VSLA) group in 2011, after hearing about the positive experiences of other members in the group. Later she was elected chairperson of her group. She started saving her money every week. She also decided to borrow a loan of 500,000 UGX (about $150) from the group, which she used as startup capital to move her small business selling produce into Gulu Main Market, the biggest and busiest market in town.
It was difficult to attract customers at first. But since she is known throughout her community in Layibi, where her VSLA group is, many people from there look for her when they go to buy food. “The day I started selling in Gulu Main Market, I had no customers and sometimes my daily sale was below 10,000 UGX (about $3). But after people discovered where I was, now I no longer cry for money,” says Olive.
After a while, Olive became a role model to the rest of the women in the group. Today most of the women in the group are competing in their savings to also be like Olive. “Being a member of the VSLA has really changed my life; my business is very profitable because I have had the necessary access to investment capital. As a result, I can feed my family well beyond their basic needs and pay for my children’s education,” she says. Since first joining the group, she has been saving some of her money to buy a plot of land. In early next year, she wants to finally build her own house.
Olive kept her focus on her business, and being in the group motivated her to work even harder. “I have to improve my work ethic to be able to contribute to the VSLA and save up money every week,” she says. “But the effort has definitely been worth it. I remember last time we had a share-out [at the end of the savings cycle], I could not believe the amount I had been able to save. I had never seen so much money, and it was now in my hand!”
