VOA慢速英語：CHAMA——肯尼亞自助群體

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A poster of Sarah Obama, the step-grandmother of President Barack Obama, is displayed during a groundbreaking ceremony for her Mama Sarah Obama Foundation charitable organization, in her home town of Kogelo, near Kisumu, in Kenya Saturday, July 18, 2015.

Chama is the term used in Kenya to describe self-helpgroups. Over the years, many Kenyan women haveformed chamas. Members contribute an agreedamount of money with the aim of helping each othergrow economically and possibly achieve financialindependence.

The groups are started informally and many are drivenby the members' desire to belong. Almost everyKenyan woman is a member of at least one or twochamas. The groups may consist of formerclassmates, colleagues at work, neighbors, friends andrelatives. Chamas have given the women increasedsocial support at times of need.

Membership is usually determined by each individualchama, in accordance with the purpose for which it was established. Some chamas are formed out of thenecessity to uplift the economic status of members,while others are just an avenue for social activities.

Initially, rural women joined in order to help each other to buy utensils, watertanks, livestock and even roofing sheets. Members would contribute as littleas 20 Kenyan shillings, which is about 20 cents in U.S. dollars. The chamasaves this until it is enough to buy whatever each member desires, oneperson at a time.

From humble beginnings, some groups have grown into savings and creditcooperative societies or microfinance companies. Others have invested inreal estate ventures.

In recent years, the government has taken steps to oversee the growingnumber of chama groups. The Department of Social Services in the Ministryof Labor now has the responsibility of registering and regulating them.

To be registered, a group has to have a constitution, minutes of the meetingauthorizing registration, and a list of elected officials. A list of the members,with copies of their identity cards, and evidence of registration fee paymentsare also required.

Once a group is duly registered it can proceed to open a bank account andtransact business. However, the majority of chama still operate informally,where members are only interested in a system called "merry-go-round." This is where money is collected and given out to one or more members. Thisprocess is repeated until all members get their share; hence, the term merry-go-round.

Some groups use a concept known as "table banking" when distributingmoney. Table banking is similar to the merry-go-round. The only difference is that the money contributed by the members is not given to one person. Whathappens is that the money is collected and then members take loans until allthe money is used up. Each member agrees to pay back her loan with interestrates varying from 10 to 20 percent, depending on what the group decides. This way, the money keeps growing and more money is available formembers to borrow every time.

Government officials and others have taken note of the huge potential ofchamas. They are warming up to partner with them to 'jumpstart' variousprojects. Two table banking programs help chamas set up a small loanfunding strategy. They are the government-operated Poverty Eradication Commision and the non-profit program, Joyful Women Organization.

Some banks have developed products to entice chama members to deposittheir money with them. In turn the banks extend credit with easier repaymentterms specifically tailored to chamas.

The government has also established programs such as the WomenEnterprise Fund, WEF. The programs give loans to women's groups with 10 or more members.

The amount of money extended by WEF ranges from 100,000 Kenyanshillings to 500,000 Kenyan shillings (about $1,000 to $5,000 US dollars.) Theloan is payable within a year upon which groups qualify for another loan.Borrowers who fail to repay their loans are blacklisted by the CreditReference Bureau. They cannot access credit from other lendingorganizations.

Beth Gichohi, a field officer in Kiambu District in central Kenya, says that thereare currently 251 active chamas in Kiambaa that have benefited fromgovernment funding.

These groups operate small businesses, such as kiosks, farming and matatuoperations, among others. However, there are other groups operatinginformally.

Ms. Gichohi says increased lending is a good indicator of the desire peoplehave to improve their lives. Her wish is to see many more groups benefit from the funding.

Teresa Maina, chair of a women's self-help group in Kiambu, indicates thather group has achieved much over the past five years. She says its 65members have managed to buy a two-acre plot and shares in the NairobiStock Exchange.

She adds that her chama assists members when they are sick or bereaved.They organize baby showers for young mothers in the group, present weddinggifts to children of members, and have a program to assist the needy,orphans and widows. They also extend loans to the members.

Ms. Maina says her chama is governed by a written constitution and set ofrules. Its members must adhere to the regulations, attend meetings, andadhere to the scheduled time of the meetings, she says. All contributionsmust be handed in before 5 p.m. on the day of a scheduled meeting. Thegroup meets once a month.

The penalty for missing two consecutive meetings is 1,000 Kenyan shillings(about $10 U.S. dollars.) Late attendance attracts a penalty of 50 Kenyanshillings, (about 50 cents in U.S. dollars) and failure to remit contributions on the day of the meeting leads to a fine of 500 Kenyan shillings (or $5 U.S.dollars.) Other chamas also have rules on fining their members.

With proper structures, chamas can be used to support sustainabledevelopment even in the most remote areas in Kenya. Yet chamas come withchallenges. Managing groups in informal set-ups is a huge task. Handlinglarge amounts of money can sometimes create problems. So can having non-professional personnel keep financial records. And then there is the issue ofdefaulters - those unable to repay loans.

Men have not been left behind. Some have set up organizations similar tochamas. They attract a large following because they are purely commercial.These groups are known as investment clubs.

There is no doubt that the chama movement plays and will continue to play animportant role in the economic lives of Kenyans.

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Words in This Story

duly - adv. in the proper or expected way

transact- v. to do (business) with another person, company, etc.

tailor - v. to make or change (something) so that it meets a special need or purpose

blacklist- v. to say that a person, company, etc., should be avoided or notallowed to do something

matatu- n. In Kenya and neighbouring nations, matatu (or matatus) areprivately owned minibuses

bereaved- adj. sad because a family member or friend has recently died