Yaa Dora

Savings group ROI funds school fees and home building

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Yaa Dora needs money to pay the school fees for one of her sons who is in senior high school. In the past, she was sometimes able to borrow from a friend who did not charge her any interest. If her friend couldn't help, she was forced to get a loan from another woman in the community who charged 30% every month. Yaa Dora took this kind of loan from the woman twice, and though she was able to pay back the loans, it affected her finances very negatively. Now that Yaa Dora is a member of a savings group Just Hope helped form in her community, she is able to secure loans at an interest rate of 3% per month. After finishing their first year-long cycle, Yaa Dora's group paid out its earnings to its members. She used her share to pay part of the fees for her son's final year of school, and to purchase 10 bags of cement to start building the foundation of a two bedroom apartment. Both of these accomplishments, she says, would have not been possible if not for her savings group.

Loan covers son’s school fees

Yaa Dora needed funds in order to settle the fees for one of her children who had gained admission into a senior high school. She took a loan of GHC 200.00 at the first loan meeting of the Sesa Mu savings group in the Berekusu community. She was able to pay back her loan within 3 months — a total amount of GHC 218.00 including the service charge of GHC 6.00 each month on the loan. Yaa Dora was very grateful she was able to secure the loan, because it would have been difficult for her to pay the admission charges for her child without it.