Profile
of Ebukya Womens’ Cooperative – Compiled on 27th January 2005
Introduction
Ebukya is a womens’ self-help
organisation in South Eastern Uganda. It operates in the districts of Wakiso,
Jinja, Kaliro, Kamuli, Mbale, Mayuge and Pallisa. Its membership is currently a
little over 2,000. While Ebukya is a womens’ project and focuses to a
considerable degree on womens’ empowerment, men are encouraged to become
involved and many of the members are men.
Ebukya is particularly active in the areas of education, health, empowerment of women and income generation and is funded primarily through the cooperative society and its income generating activities.
History
Ebukya started as a group of women
from varied backgrounds who wanted to work together to better their lives, their
economic circumstances and the educational opportunities of their children.
Several of the women were coping with widowhood, abandonment by their spouse or
HIV.
They met regularly and worked
together on income generating activities such as growing crops and making goods
for sale. In 2001 Ebukya still only comprised around 20 women, but a strong
infrastructure had been developed.
One major concern was the lack of
adequate educational facilities and in 1999; the women set up a school in rented
premises. This was funded by their income generating activities and staffed by
volunteers.
In 2001, the school moved to new
premises. The land was bought from the council with money raised from income
generating activities and the construction, including classrooms, dormitories
etc. was funded by Tzedek, a UK based charity. Although the buildings were not
completed until 2002, the school moved to the site while construction was in
progress and used temporary makeshift classrooms, in order not to have to rent
premises. A further block of classrooms funded by Tzedek is almost complete and
will be put to full use while completion is still in progress.
Partly as a result of the
publicity generated through the success of the school, lots of people expressed
an interest in joining Ebukya. As a result, the leaf project came into being,
heralding Ebukya’s transformation from a small group of dedicated women to a
much larger scale cooperative society addressing, among other things, income
generation, health, womens’ empowerment, and education..
In 2000 a member Ebukya died in childbirth, due to the fact that she lived in a remote village where there was no appropriate medical care. This tragedy highlighted the need for local midwives and triggered the establishment of Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs).
Decisions submitted to the
trustees are made by the Executive Committee, chaired by Rebecca.
Womens’ Initiative Committee
(WIC) devises solutions to practical day to day problems and submits them to the
Executive Committee. .
Members of Ebukya are organized
into Village Credit Committees (VCCs), each comprising five members and each
having its own chairperson, secretary and treasurer. Volunteers both internal
and external to Ebukya provide training for these roles.
The VCCs are organised into Credit
Guarantee Groups (CGGs). Each CGG comprises around ten VCCs and the secretaries,
chairs and treasurers of the VCCs attend the meetings.
Staffing
With the exception of the school
(see below) the overwhelming majority of people who provide services to Ebukya
do so on a voluntary basis. However, there small number of paid staff. These
include a development officer, training officer, credit officer and the
salespeople at the produce collection centre in Kampala.
Becoming
a Member of Ebukya
Anybody who joins Ebukya must pay
a registration fee of 1,000 shillings (about 30p).
There are two types of members,
namely registered and approved members. Anybody who sends their children to the
school has to become a registered member. Provided that they pay their childrens’
school fees registered members are not required to join the cooperative or
become involved in its activities.
Approved members go through an
initiation process and are expected to participate fully in the activities of
the cooperative society. For those who wish to send their children to the school
and cannot afford to do so, the cooperative society offers a framework within
which they can generate the income to pay school fees.
New members have to open saving
accounts with Ebukya and are organised into Village Credit Committees (VCCs)
each comprising five members. They are required to undergo four training
sessions (once a week for four weeks). During the training sessions, new members
are taught bookkeeping
skills and vote for their chairs, treasurers and secretaries, who also go to
make up the Credit Guarantee Groups (CGGs).
The above process is more informal
for individuals who join already established VCCs.
Activities
of Ebukya
The School in
Kamuli
The school was
deemed necessary owing to the poor quality of education in rural areas. It is a
boarding school and is thus able to serve a very wide catchment area.
The school
currently employs ten full time teaching staff and two non-teaching staff. The
site and buildings are owned by Ebukya but the running costs come to around 20
million shillings a year (about six thousand pounds). This includes teachers
salaries and overheads. These costs should be met primarily from school fees but
at the time of writing, many parents are finding it difficult to meet their
commitments.
Last year 382
pupils between the ages of 5 and 16 were registered at the school.
Unfortunately, 174 have had to drop out through being unable to pay their fees.
Financing the running costs of the school and facilitating parents to meet their
financial commitments are major concerns at the present time.
This year, the
school will be educating pupils over sixteen for the first time, and will be
greatly increasing its capacity for vocational training both for those over and
those under 16. Specialist vocational training staff have been taken on and it
is anticipated that the new classroom block funded by Tzedek will be largely
used for vocational activities.
Currently, it is
planned to offer training in tailoring, brick making, carpentry, metalwork and
farming. It is hoped ultimately to provide secretarial and IT training but
resources for this are currently unavailable.
It is
anticipated that these vocational activities will generate income which will
ultimately be used both to fund the school and to provide some savings to enable
graduating pupils to establish themselves in their chosen trade.
At the time of
writing, a brick wall is planned around the school for security purposes and
this construction project will also incorporate staff rooms. Construction costs
will be minimal, as the bricks and labour are provided by Ebukya members/pupils.
Ebukya is also
lobbying the local council for provision of an access road to the school.
The Leaf
Project
The activities
of the cooperative society come under the umbrella of the Leaf Project. The
title was deemed appropriate owing to the emphasis on using the production and
effective marketing of cash crops as a means of generating income. The
overwhelming majority of Ugandans living in rural areas own some land, but
frequently do not utilise it to its full potential.
On becoming
approved members, those new to Ebukya open savings accounts (see above) with the
Village Cooperative Bank. The money deposited in these accounts belongs to the
individual members.
Ebukya provides seeds for cultivation and where available, plough and oxen and pesticides. They are provided on credit if necessary and a small profit is made from the sales/use of these items.
Ebukya also
strives to get a fair price for its members’ produce, most notably through
their produce distribution center in the Kampala market, where grains and pulses
are bought wholesale, for example by schools and the prison service. Again,
Ebukya makes a small profit on the sale of produce.
Finally, members
pay 0.5% of their profits from their sales to Ebukya.\
Other Micro-Enterprise Activities
Handicrafts – Under this heading come a range of handmade artifacts aimed largely at the tourist market. Rhona Marshall from Christian Relief Uganda has also been instrumental in creating a retail outlet through her craft stall in Cheshire. Products include bowls made from banana fibers and coconut leaves, hand made cards, hand woven handbags etc. Handicrafts are largely centered in the Wakiso district near Kampala, where there is a small shop that operates as a showcase for products and where agents, e.g. from Kampala hotels, come to place orders.
Due to the fact that they appeal to Western consumers, handicrafts have proved a very lucrative source of income. Because of this, only half of the profits go to the producers while the other half goes towards funding the school.
Small shops. – A number of members have set up small shops and stalls, e.g. cafes, barbershops, groceries, etc.
Livestock
farming – raising chickens, cows and goats can provide an additional source of
income as well as much needed protein in the form of eggs, meat and milk. Loans
are provided to enable members to do this.
The drama group
– The drama group comprises some thirty-six members, tutored by Rebecca’s
father. They tour villages and provide education in health, HIV prevention and
womens’ issues such as domestic violence through performances involving music,
dance and drama.
This is an
established and accepted medium of education in many parts of Africa, where most
people have no access to television. Currently, the services of the drama group
are utilized not only by Ebukya members but also by other NGOs. They thus
generate income for Ebukya and the performers.
Skills training – Some members of Ebukya generate income through activities such as pottery, brick making, tailoring/dress making/dyeing etc. Ebukya endeavors to provide loans/training/materials e.g. sewing machines where resources permit.
Traditional
Birth Attendants (TBAs)
There are
currently seven TBAs working for Ebukya. To be a TBA, it is necessary to undergo
one year’s “on the job” hospital training. There is no fee for this but
TBAs need to be supported with regard to living costs. Because of this, it has
not been possible to train enough TBAs. Around 20 are needed, and as a result,
many areas in which Ebukya operates have no TBA.
TBAs are vital in remote districts where medical care is often many miles away and there is no motorized transport available. While specializing in midwifery and child health, they provide a general primary health service in the areas in which they operate. They work on a voluntary basis or are paid in kind, e.g. with food that they can sell on. Some TBAs make a living through setting up pharmacies or other income generating activities. While trained in conventional health care, they still rely on some traditional herbal remedies where conventional drugs are unavailable or unaffordable.
The Library
Ebukya has a small lending library in Kaliro, which is also used as a regional office. It is staffed by a volunteer and the rent for the premises is paid through fees on borrowing books.
Community
Sensitisation
A great deal of work has been done in educating Ebukya members in matters of health, financial independence, literacy, domestic abuse, nutrition etc. This is done largely through the voluntary efforts of Ebukya members. A few examples of this include;
Soya bean production – Finding cheap sources of protein is a problem for poor families. Ebukya, encourages villagers to grow Soya beans as a source of protein and shows them how to make soya flour/milk/cakes/porridge etc.
Adult Literacy – Ebukya has realized that parents who have experienced the advantages of being literate and numerate are more likely to understand how beneficial it for their children to be educated.
Womens’ Rights – Through such avenues as the drama group, Ebukya tries to show women that they don’t have to put up with domestic violence, unreasonable work demands, rape, having up to fifteen children etc.
Health and hygiene – Largely through the TBA’s members are taught basic health precautions such as boiling water (where water is unsafe), building latrines and keeping their children healthy and disease free.
Current Needs
Ebukya currently has problems in meeting the running costs of the school in Kamuli. This is owing to the fact that it is primarily dependent on parents paying their school fees in order to do so and many parents have been unable to raise the money to do this. It is anticipated that in the long term, these costs will be met through income generated from vocational activities at the school, and through parents being enabled to afford the school fees through success in micr-enterprise/income generating activities.
Ebukya has a good deal of experience in income generation but has expanded at a rapid rate and doesn’t have enough money for a revolving fund that reflects the size of the organization. Thus many members who are deserving of micro-credit are waiting for loans.
While the TBAs are very effective in the areas in which they operate, they are severely lacking in medical equipment, medicines and other resources. One particular concern was the need for motorbikes to transport injured patients to hospital.
In addition, there are not enough TBAs to cover the areas in which Ebukya operates. This is partly due to the expense involved in supporting them during training. As a result, many members have no access to natal or primary health care. This inevitably leads to high levels of disease, birth complications, ill health and preventable death.