Zondi with her neighbor, Mbhele, sharing responsibility for their chicken project. Photo: World Vision
Written by: World Vision Staff; Edited by Leanna Cappiello
Word travels fast among the Umvoti community. Zondi heard about a local savings group from her friend Dladla, so they agreed to buddy up and join the group together.
Here, Zondi recounts her time in training, her newly-learned saving techniques and her high satisfaction.
“During the [savings group] training, we were taught that you can take out a loan to start a new business. Once I start saving, I did just like that. I took a loan of 1,000 rand ($80 USD) because there was a funeral in Durban and I was able to pay it back with 10 per cent interest. I then took another loan of 2,000 rand ($160 USD) because I had a vision of starting a chicken [breeding] project. So, I bought 20 chicks and raised them till they were ready to be sold with a price of 80 rand ($6.50 USD) each. I made profit and was able to repay the loan.
“I approached my next-door neighbour, Mbhele—who is also a businessman—to come together and be partners on this chicken project. Together, we bought 100 chicks for 700 ($56 USD). We raised them and all were sold making a profit of 8,000 rand ($643 USD).
“The business has been growing very well. I have been able to buy a three-piece sofa, a DVD player and a wall unit using cash I earned with the income from the chicken project.
“Life was hard before I became a member of the savings group. I’m a now a better woman because of it. Before, [my family and I] were dependent on my husband’s pension of 1,500 rand ($120 USD) a month.”
Zondi has known hard times. And though this solution isn’t perfect, it’s equipped her with sustainable solutions for finances and creative options for businesses. Zondi’s newfound confidence has even inspired some start new projects: “I’ve started selling chips and sweets and I use the income to buy bread and other foods,” she says.
With love, victory over poverty is possible. Zonti is proof of that, and hers is just one story.
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