Empowering women through real, tangible change
Weary of the so-called “help” their village had previously received, Jemima saw this long-term impact!
Although a born leader, societal limitations hindered her impact in her community
Jemima is a born leader. But as a woman living in Dodoma, Tanzania, she hasn’t had the opportunity to use her gifts in her community. There have been bigger problems to worry about.
Life in Tanzania is challenging. As hunger and malnutrition continue to prevail, especially in Dodoma, Jemima wasn’t always sure she would have enough to feed her children. Although she has a supportive husband, the pressure is particularly high as a mother. Jemima speaks from experience when she explains, “When a child is hungry, they will cry to the mother that they want food. Then, if you look for something to feed them, and find there isn’t anything to give, you can’t do anything. Mothers cannot leave their children to suffer.”
There have been minimal efforts made by the local government or by NGOs to address the hunger challenges in the region, but because of donors like you, Tearfund’s local church partner has been able to host training for Village Saving and Loans groups, which teaches financial autonomy, and Conservation Agriculture, an innovative farming technique. Meeting at the market centre, the topics were introduced.
At first, like many of her neighbours, Jemima was skeptical. Others had come before to “help” the community, but had only given temporary hand-outs that, in the long-term, only made matters worse.
It took 3 days of training for Jemima’s heart to soften to the idea and to the church. She learned how both the agricultural training and the savings groups could help her and her community, and she learned that they could do it themselves. They didn’t have to rely on other people.
It wasn’t a quick fix, but it gave her hope.
Soon Jemima was saving money reliably for her children to go to school and live healthy childhoods. After the first cycle of saving when she received her share for the year, she said, “As a woman, the project has changed me. I thank God; he has blessed me.”
Now, Jemima is a facilitator of her local savings group. She trains the women in her community so well that they are able to start their own groups with confidence! When the group finishes each savings cycle, her husband, seeing how they are transforming the community, congratulates them.
Thanks to your generosity, Jemima is using her gifts to make a difference in the lives of women in Tanzania. Today, she is empowering women through real change, encouraging them to join a group and grow in success and faith together.
