Aitiji Ican”(meaning “Fighting Poverty”) Farmers’ Field School was started by the Women in Ongutoi village, Uganda. It was founded on the principle that a fully educated, empowered and economically productive woman in the family will be able to fight poverty at personal, family and community levels and be able to meet her own needs and the needs of the family.
Most women in this community are farmers and traders who sell their products in the local market on a weekly basis. However, they have very little voice and power in their family decisions and hardly own property of their own. Yet the family livelihood and day-to-day survival is solely dependent on them. They have to plan and prepare for daily meals and the sustenance of the family and in many cases many of these women are widows with poor health.
Aitiji Ican is a women micro-credit association which provides interest-free loans to women who are members of the group to support them in acquiring land, seeds for their farms, and livestock especially cows and goats.
The women also have become a strong voice in the community and are equipping women to know their rights and to fight for their rights in a very patriarchal society.
They also meet every month to talk about issues that affect them as Village women and design strategies to improve their livelihoods.
The Canadian Samaritans for Africa works with the Children Health and Education Foundation of Uganda and CORE Uganda in providing an initial 5000 dollars grant to support the first 40 women who are involved in this micro-credit group. Canadian Samaritans since 2013 has also provided summer training for the women in areas of financial management, saving schemes, and principles and programs for co-operative activities which they have framed into their working document.
All the recipients of the loan in 2013 have successfully returned the money and the second cycle of loan will begin in the summer of 2018 for another 40 women.
To read more: http://www.coreuganda.org/the-need.html