Nestled on the upper Western part of Uganda, Yumbe District borders South Sudan in the North and is a few miles from the Democratic Republic of Congo in the West. Because of its location at the crossroads of many trade roads, the area is home to different cultures and serves as an crossroads for the movement of agricultural produce and other trade routes.

Most women in the area partake in agricultural activities, from transporting foodstuff to growing crops and, finally, selling them in nearby markets or as street vendors. Although many live on subsistence farming, most farmers also rely on market sales. Even though the district lies at the intersection of three countries at the heart of Sub-Saharan Africa, the pathways to the markets are rugged, mostly unpaved and uneven. This is why many farmers rely on savings groups and digital finance to maintain their small businesses.

To make sure that more farmers in rural Uganda can withstand and recuperate from economic shocks – should they happen -- the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), with the help of SIDA, is supporting organizations like the company, Ensibuuko, which helps organizations automate their operations savings and loans management to become efficient, so that savings groups can extend digital literacy training to their members. UNCDF’s funding of Ensibuuko is directly supporting the Village Loans and Savings Association in Uraku Community Savings Group, which is a savings group located in Lomunga village. Ensibuuko is helping beneficiaries better manage and track savings group transactions, allowing for transparency and accountability along the way.

Collection of money at savings group meeting. © UNCDF / Nasser AlQatami 2021

Kubura Ijirib, 51, is a subsistence farmer and a grandmother living in Yumbe District. She mainly grows maize and groundnuts and, sometimes, cassava. She does so to feed her children and her grandchildren, however, since she has been farming her whole life, she has managed to master her craft to produce more than her and her family needs. The produce that is left after family consumption is taken to nearby markets like Lima Market in Koboko and Yumbe market for sale.

To make sure that she can access the money on a rainy day, Ijirib joined the savings group. She puts in 10,000 Ugandan shillings (approximately US$ 2.85) a week in the savings group. Last September, she took out a loan when her grandchild was stricken with malaria, the predominant cause of death in rural Uganda. She took him to the Matuma Health Center, where he was cared for and ultimately overcame the disease.

She recalls a time when she contracted the disease and didn’t have the means to take care of herself. This Uraku Community Savings Group helped her with this family circumstance when she needed it. She now buys medicine and stores it in the house as a preventative measure.

Kubura Ijirib attending the weekly savings group meeting. © UNCDF / Nasser AlQatami 2021

Other ways she has utilized the loan is by diversifying nutrition for her and her family. Although she grows three different types of produce, the money she saves enables her to add other food to her inventory. She said: “On my table at home and at the market, I can provide and sell Mukene (Lake Victoria Sardines), fresh tomatoes and shea butter oil.”

Prior to joining this group, which serves as a Savings Group but also a weekly communal meeting with other women who are in the market sharing know-how, she was hesitant to take any loans for fear of being in debt. The weekly meetings consist of 52 members, 45 of which are women of all ages.

Zabibu Wadria, 25, is one of the youngest members of the group. She farms beans and groundnuts, which she turns into paste. She also contributes weekly sum of 10,000 Ugandan shillings (approximately US$ 2.85).

She noted: “In August I took out a loan of 600,000 to purchase more beans for sale at Lima Market. It’s my first loan from the group and I am still in the process of selling all of it to make profit. I will stay with the group as long as it lasts as it offers better ways to manage my business.”

Zabibu Wadria at the savings group meeting. © UNCDF / Nasser AlQatami 2021

For many women who joined, the savings group serves as a lifeline and a community meeting from which they can discuss ongoing affairs, the market atmosphere and social happenings. There is a sense of community to it, therefore many women feel safe contributing a part of their earnings to it. Moreover, the accounting is done with transparency as the spreadsheet is available for anyone to view.

Julius Omongole, a Representative of Ensibuuko, said: “UNCDF is helping by providing funds used to extend digital literacy training to the group members. The Savings Group is lending loans to the women during the COVID-19 pandemic without asking for any securities. The future of the group is bright as the members are willing to have it upgraded into a cooperative.”

The UNCDF-Ensibuuko partnership is reflective of the Digital Community Entrepreneur (DCE) model, one of the innovative business models UNCDF uses to reach last mile populations in a sustainable way. The model is premised on using community champions, with high business acumen and a support management structure to improve digital and financial literacy. DCEs sell products such as phones, airtime, data top-ups as well as mobile money services in their communities upon which they earn a commission. In addition, the DCEs work as role models or peer educators tasked with training and supporting farmers in the use of new digital solutions.

The DCE model also emphasizes access for farmers to a broader range of affordable and relevant financial services, such as mobile money, digital payments, credit products and insurance products.

DCEs are also fostering financial and digital services within reach of rural women, notably through digital literacy trainings, selling of digital enabling products (solar & phones), working as mobile money agents and onboarding farmers on mobile money use. Such initiatives support greater mobility for women who are often restricted by their spouses, child care responsibilities and cultural beliefs, as well as the costly and inefficient transport means that hinder their ability to access conventional financial services.

By driving the uptake of digital financial services, the usage of other digital innovations and digital literacy, the DCE model contributes to increased farm productivity, improved farm management, access to energy, improved access to markets, and consequently increased incomes for rural farmers.