Within the Eastern Province of Zambia, many single, divorced and widowed women find it exceedingly difficult to provide for their households’ basic needs. Their meager incomes often don’t cover the cost of food, clothing, adequate shelter, education and health care for themselves or their children. As a result, female-headed households are desperate for an alternative means to increase income and provide for their families.
Along with our partner in Zambia, the Kachere Development Program, Cross works to empower women to build sustainable small businesses. Currently, 436 training and business groups, each comprising 15 to 20 women, meet weekly across many Zambian villages.
One of these groups is the Women’s Sewing Project, based in a central location in the Chipangali District. Currently, 20 women run the business, working on manual sewing machines, as there is no electric grid in the area. They sew uniforms or clothes for families or small businesses and have a full-time trainer to help them develop their sewing and business skills. Each woman has her own clients, but they also work as a collective and share resources.
In addition to the work sessions, the women hold self-help group meetings, where they share ideas and resources to help each other improve their livelihoods. Group members borrow money from the group’s savings and abide by the agreed repayment and interest terms. With the help of the Kachere Development Program, we aim to raise the income of the participants by helping them build sustainable sewing businesses.
Is the venture successful? Just ask Dorika Mwale. Before she became involved with the Women’s Sewing Project, her family faced many hardships. They struggled to meet their daily needs. Most days, they only ate one meal.
Dorika’s husband, Aaron, is a seasonal farmer and earns about $30 for the entire harvest, not nearly enough to support their family of six. But self-help groups such as the Women’s Sewing Project ensure that hardworking women like Dorika don’t have to rely on charity or borrow from predatory moneylenders. Instead, she has established a thriving business where she sews clothes, school uniforms and other garments for clients all across the Chipangali District. The training she receives from the Women’s Sewing Project is wide-ranging, and includes business planning, assertiveness training, psychological counseling and spiritual development.
“The Women’s Sewing Project has changed everything!” says Dorika. “For the first time in my life, I have money left over each month to use at my discretion!”
Cross International currently has microenterprise programs in three countries — Zambia, Malawi and Uganda — improving the lives of more than 3,400 men and women, and indirectly providing a better future for more than 7,400 children.
Our work ranges from self-help groups that offer low-interest microloans, job training and community support to residential programs that offer career counseling, tutoring and Bible training.
