The Wendo wa aka Ndiwa Women Group in Makueni consists of 15 widows from different denominations.  When we visited them for the first time in 2023, the women expressed a desire to support each other in their widowhood and to help each member to be economically stable. To achieve this goal, they desired to meet regularly for fellowship and to grow their pool of savings that members could borrow from at a small interest. We shared with them the empowerment vision of  TLAfrica WEP, and they were ready to join in.

The first project they had in mind, was to buy goats for each group member, which they can breed to grow their flock, so that they obtain income from selling the goats and their milk. Their goal is that each woman will have 5 goats by the end of the three cycles of loans from TLAfrica.

In the first cycle in December 2023, the group received a loan of Kes 123,000 from TLAfrica. They bought 30 goats and distributed 2 to each member to rear. The leaders showed great responsibility by buying the members’ goats first, and theirs last.

The TLAfrica team visited the group in March 2024 to see the goats and review the progress of the group. The women shared with us how excited they were to have their goats.

The group repaid their entire loan with interest (total Kes 135300) by the end of July 2024.

In September 2024, the Kenya office project manager visited the group to review the ended loan cycle and to receive their next proposal. The group reported that they had sold 20 out of the 30 goats, at a profit of Kes 20,000. They had remained with 10 goats (5 male and 5 female). The 5 females had each delivered a kid. Therefore the group currently has 15 goats.

The remaining goats will be distributed to members. The Kes 20,000 profit was added to their pool of savings, which members continue to borrow from at a small interest through their table banking. The women were grateful to God that no incidences such as sicknesses had affected their goats.

The group desires to take another loan from WEP, to buy more goats, this time targeting to borrow a loan enough to buy 3 goats for each member.

We are encouraged by this group, as they have shown openness, unity, and responsibility in their group activities while keeping to the TLAfrica WEP policies.

The members love their fellowship. This is what they had to say about their group and the completed cycle:

Hannah, “I entered this group when my husband passed on. Here, I have found community and I feel loved.”

Philomena, “After buying the goats, they helped me because I did not have to buy milk. My family enjoyed the goat milk in tea, which is very nutritious for them.”

Agnes, “We have seen God’s hand through TLAfrica. We sold the goats at a profit, and now we can borrow from our savings for needs like children’s school fees. We feel covered in times of need, and no longer suffer because of smaller issues.”

Teresia, “We help each other in our home events. When one of us has an event, we pool together to support her with funds and activities around the home such as cooking.”

Teresia (the oldest member): When I got the goats, I built a ‘zizi’ (goat pen) with my own hands. I don’t have a husband to build it, but through this project, I got the courage to build it. I take pride in it. Nowadays when I wake up, I go to the zizi to tend to the goats. We don’t know how TLAfrica found us in this thicket, but we know it is God’s guidance.

Felistus, “When we are in this group, none of us can misbehave in the community, because she will be issued with a warning. It keeps us accountable.”