Economics

Women in Uganda Benefit From Freedom From Hunger's Microcredit/Education Program

In Uganda, Violet Mutoto is able to manage her business and better feed and educate her three children with the help of the "Credit With Education" program.

"Participation in the programs leads to empowerment of women through their acquisition of valued skills and knowledge and through their ability to save."

A Freedom From Hunger-sponsored microcredit and education program that aids women in Uganda is a proven success. A recent study by the U.S. Agency for International Development of three microfinance organizations in Uganda found that the region's microcredit programs are effectively working to improve the lives of their participants.

Included in the study was the Foundation for Credit and Community Assistance (FOCCAS) Uganda, Freedom from Hunger's local partner in implementing the Credit with Education program in rural eastern Uganda.

Using information gathered from interviews with more than 1,300 program participants from the three organizations, researchers found that nearly all respondents benefited from their involvement in the microfinance programs.

Researchers concluded that the institutions are reaching their goals of serving primarily poor participants and that access to cash loans provides participants with a broader range of choices for managing their small businesses. They also found that participation in the programs leads to empowerment of women through their acquisition of valued skills and knowledge and through their ability to save.

The Credit with Education program in Uganda has been reaching women and their families since 1996. The service combines small cash loans and health and nutrition education for women living in rural areas of the developing world. Through rigorous research, Freedom from Hunger has found that Credit with Education improves the income of poor families, the self confidence of the women involved, the food security of the family and, most importantly, the nutritional status of the children whose mothers participate in the program.

As of Sept. 30, 2001, FOCCAS Uganda was supporting 416 credit associations with a membership of 16,837. The program has lent over $5 million, and the average loan size per borrower is just $40.

For more information, contact April Watson, (530) 758-6200 ext. 47 or awatson@freefromhunger.org.