63 women's funds waiting for your small contribution

The campaign "Every Toman Bal You and Me" has been launched with the aim of strengthening micro savings funds of 1,200 women in Sistan-Baluchistan. These funds are formed with the small savings of women and they need people's support to maintain their lending power.

Ambassador Arjan-Fateme Askarinia: Sometimes the capital of a business is formed not from a bank loan and a big investor, but from the money that a few women put aside every month. They save a part of their income to have access to their savings when buying raw materials or meeting essential living expenses. Now women's savings funds in Sistan and Baluchistan, under the pressure of increasing living costs and decreasing purchasing power, need new support; Support provided by people's participation and even small amounts.

The campaign "Har Toman Ball You and Me" has been launched by the Women and Youth Entrepreneurship Development Foundation with the same goal. This campaign wants to strengthen the funds that women have built themselves and rely on to provide part of their life needs and income-generating activities.

Funds that were collected together

Mohammad Javad Dordakshan, CEO of Women and Youth Entrepreneurship Development Foundation, in a conversation with Ambassador Arjan, considers micro savings funds as one of the tools for empowering women in less fortunate areas. According to him, over the years, members of these funds have learned to save, make decisions about loan payments, and manage their collective financial resources.

The members of each fund save a monthly amount by mutual agreement and then lend to each other based on the set priorities. These loans are sometimes used to buy yarn and fabric, provide raw materials for needlework and other income-generating activities, and in some cases, cover part of the necessary expenses for treatment and family life. Funds are not just a place to collect money. They are collective mechanisms that allow women to rely on the capital they have created to meet some of their needs.

When savings are not as strong as before

The increase in the cost of living has reduced the financial power of these funds. Amounts that used to be enough to buy raw materials or pay for essential expenses may not cover the same needs now. On the other hand, a part of the fund's resources should be left to pay the next loans. The devaluation of the currency has also limited their lending power.

Dardakshan says that the foundation's experience in strengthening funds through the banking system has led them to the conclusion that the direct participation of people can increase the resources of these groups. These resources are available to women themselves and are managed by their collective decision.

According to the statistics announced by the CEO of Women and Youth Entrepreneurship Development Foundation, about 1,200 women are active in 63 micro savings funds and self-help groups. These groups have been formed in 28 neighborhoods and villages of Sistan-Balochistan.

The aim of the campaign is to increase the financial resources of the funds according to their status and performance so that they can give more effective loans to the members. According to Dardakshan, the amount of support is determined based on indicators such as the transparency of accounts and books, the status of loan repayment and the way resources are managed.

He gives an example to explain this mechanism: if a fund has a balance of 40 million tomans and its performance is evaluated as favorable, the injection of new resources can increase its lending power. In this case, the members find the possibility of meeting greater needs. Funds collected are not meant to be spent only once. These resources are added to the capital of the funds to make it possible to pay more loans and recirculate money among the members.

The activity of women members of these groups is not limited to saving and receiving loans. Some of them work in the field of handicrafts, especially needlework and fabric production, and they have also created ways to sell their products. Dardakshan says that the products of these groups are sold through various markets, cooperation with some companies and stores, and participation in exhibitions. According to him, the total sales of the products of these groups last year was about 5 billion Tomans. This figure indicates the formation of income-generating activities in addition to savings funds.

According to Dardakhan, strengthening the financial resources of the funds can help to provide raw materials and continue the production of women. Of course, the benefit of the members depends on the conditions and type of activity of each group.

We are not supposed to work for women

The important point in this campaign is its view on social participation. A group outside the local community is not supposed to make decisions for the women or record the results of their efforts. The goal is to strengthen the capital that women have built and managed by themselves over the years.

"We are not going to work for them," Dardakhan says, emphasizing this approach. We want to be with them in difficult economic conditions and help them continue on this path."

Maintaining the independence of the groups and entrusting the management of resources to the women themselves is one of the principles emphasized by the CEO of the foundation. In this view, people's participation is not a substitute for women's efforts; Rather, it supports the path they have already started.

According to Dardakshan Povish, "Har Toman Bal Tu and Me" is based on the same idea: to strengthen a fund, you don't always need a large capital. Sometimes small contributions, when combined, increase the financial strength of a group and allow more women to count on their collective capital to continue working and living.