WHO WE WORK WITH

CAIXA DAS MULHERES DE NAMPULA


The "Caixa das Mulheres de Nampula" is a savings and credit union for the low income women of Nampula province who do not have access to financial services. The Caixa provides a safe place for rural women to deposit their money and for others to borrow and start income-generating projects. It was founded under the auspices of The Association of Rural Women in 1994 but quickly became independent of this body almost two years later.

The "Caixa" has had a turbulent history. From the beginning there has been a lack of targeted, technical assistance needed by a women's savings and credit union in a developing economy like Mozambique. The low literacy, numeracy and experience levels of the early leadership made it all that more difficult to progress in a country with no other credit unions to learn from. It remains dependent on COCAMO for the bulk of operational expenses, office space, transport and technical assistance today.

In spite of these odds, the Caixa has addressed a real need for rural women to have a safe place to deposit their family's money over the years. More than 1000 families in Nampula currently benefit from this service. It has also provided a source of credit

to women who do not even qualify to open a bank account. From its inception, loan capital has always originated from the Caixa's savings. The Caixa remains one of the few platforms in Nampula for women to empower themselves and to experience growth in an organisational development sense. Every evaluation done on the Caixa has noted the strong sense of ownership the women have over the project.

More recently, the Caixa is experiencing signs of a turnaround on a number of fronts. In a consultancy completed in June 2001, an internationally respected authority on savings and credit unions, Tony Schumacher (formerly with the World Council of Credit Unions), noted a 37% increase in membership over the 1999-2000 period. The savings increase for the same period amounted to 74% while loan activity grew at a healthy 117%. Though still a chronic problem, delinquency on loans has gone down from 35% to 12%. Schumacher also noted that the leadership is more effective in meetings and other responsibilities now that all are literate and fluent in Portuguese.

COCAMO provides support for the Caixa's current operating costs. Operations remain the key area of concern if the Caixa is to become financially sustainable and flourish. Improvements in accounting, internal controls, performance monitoring, training, capital formation and formal registration require attention over the next three years. As a result, greater technical and financial assistance will need to be mobilised by COCAMO and other sources in order to set in motion a 3-year strategic plan designed by the Caixa leadership and Shumacher. The plan is designed to shift the Caixa from being a project to that of an independent, self-sufficient financial services organisation.