VIRL changing lives of women in Zimbabwe - Zimbabwe

VIRL changing lives of women in Zimbabwe

Women in Zimbabwe face a lot of changes in accessing financial services which include lack of collateral, low literacy, cultural and gender discrimination which limit them to child bearing and household chores. They normally are relegated to look after small animals like chicken and family gardens. However, VIRL believes that every woman poses a special gift to give to this world if she is empowered, and is working to change this perception through affordable loans and financial education.

Growing old did not discourage Alice Tsvarai to discover her lifelong desire she had of becoming a great farmer (Hurudza). She grows crops that include maize, beans, coffee and bananas. She decided to work with VIRL because she was facing serious challenges in raising funds to acquire farming inputs.

She has benefited from VIRL through financial education, record keeping and financial literacy. Alice now has access to water through irrigation pipes financed by VIRL, access to markets whose demand she is able to meet with increased production. She also acquired fertilizers on time through VIRL input loan, and this has increased her production from growing 200 banana plants to 550 banana plants and 250 plants of coffee now. Improved production and related income has seen Ms Tsvarai managing to look after extended family members by sending four of her dependants to school. 

Alice is grateful to VIRL as she is now self-sufficient and has the capacity to employ two seasonal labourers to work in her fields. She is expecting to take another loan to buy more pipes and to buy iron sheets for her house she is extending from two rooms to five rooms.