Tusano 1108 Group

There are four women in the Tusano 1108 group and they are all from Livingstone. They are between the ages of thirty-one and fifty-two years. They have a joint total of 37 dependants. These children are going to school. The members have three other children and they are independent wage earners in the women's households. The women in this group are either married or single. They all get help either from their spouses or family members in running their businesses, for example buying stock.

Linda is the member of the group in focus. She is forty-eight and is delighted to share her story as an entrepreneur. She runs a store selling blankets, bedsheets and duvets as a means to earn her income, just like all the members in her group. Linda is a single mum and she is extremely grateful for this business because she has managed to send one of her children to college and her last-born daughter is in high school and getting excellent grades. Lindah’s customers enjoy buying goods from her because she sells quality blankets and so she needs a loan so that she can expand her business.

The Microloan Foundation in Zambia lends to female entrepreneurs using the ‘centre’ model. A centre is typically made up of 3-4 sub-groups and these sub-groups almost always have five members. Each centre has its own name and the sub-groups within the centre share the same name. Each person within the group of five women is responsible for repaying her loan but the members support each other and if a member is unable to repay her loan on time, then the group assumes responsibility for repayment. Loan officers provide training to the groups, although it is expected that centre leaders will eventually assume responsibility for providing some of the basic training.