Ariyo Richard is a 53-year-old father of nine who hails from Mbenje Village in the area of Traditional Authority (T/A) Ngabu, Nsanje district. As a standard 2 school dropout, Ariyo has been unable to get a stable employment to ably support his family. As a subsistence farmer, Ariyo and his family have also been affected by issues of food insecurity due to the impact of climate change and number of devastating cyclone induced floods.
Thus, Ariyo was encouraged to join a newly established 14-member Tiyamike Savings and Loans Group (SLG) that was initiated in his area on 29th September, 2024. The SLG was established to enhance the impact of Social Cash Transfer Programme (SCTP) by promoting saving and investing among the beneficiaries.
Ariyo joined Tiyamike SLG and deposited his first shares of MK 12, 0000 and managed to access a soft loan of MK 20,000. Thus, the loan enabled Ariyo and her husband to venture into the business of selling fish. The fish selling business has proved to be lucrative. On weekly basis, Ariyo makes a profit of about MK 24, 000 which MK 2,000 higher than the loan she accessed from her savings and loan group. The proceeds from the business have seen Ariyo buying 2 goats as an additional income generating venture, paying tuition fees for children who are still schooling as well as brining food on the table for her family.
“This is not the first time for me to benefiting from the social cash transfer programme. However, there is no any notable socioeconomic change to show. This time around, the concept of SLG has worked wonders as we are now able to buy shares, access loans from the groups and venture into small-scale businesses,” explained Richard.
Ariyo also intends to strengthen the floor and walls of her house by plastering them with cement to ably withstand the frequent floods that often devastate Nsanje district.
The integration of SLGs into SCTP is an initiative under the Building Resilience through Advancement of Women and Girls’ Functional Empowerment Project with funding from UNICEF, European Union and the government of Ireland.
As an implementing partner which is providing tailored support in the programme, YONECO has been supporting the process of establishing SLGs, and strengthening the capacity of beneficiaries in business management as well as managing social protection issues.
