This blog post was written by May Mak, our Senior Grants & Programmes Officer.
In the last week of June I joined a Five Talents trip to Burundi. This was the first time the Five Talents team had been to visit a programme since the COVID pandemic stopped travel in 2020 and it was my first time visiting Burundi.
First Impressions
As we drove from the airport to the hotel, all pre-trip anxieties melted away and my heart began to sing. I have previously lived in neighbouring Rwanda and was greeted with a comforting familiarity: lush green hills, deep red earth, an expanse of blue skies; and wide-eyed curiosity accompanied by cries of ‘muzungu’ (a term referring to all foreigners - usually ‘white’ visitors). Despite the hustle and bustle and what I knew about the history of Burundi, an inexplicable peace filled me.
Country Context
Burundi is a land-locked country of over twelve million people covering an area of 27,839 square kilometres (that’s less than 12% of the size of the UK!). It is ranked 185/189 on the UN Human Development Index, making it one of the most socio-economically disadvantaged countries in the world. This is seen in high rates of food insecurity, malnutrition, vulnerability to climate-related shocks (eg. drought/floods), poor to limited access to basic services such as healthcare and education - and consequently, a high prevalence of infectious diseases, widespread illiteracy and unemployment.
But this is Burundi on paper - not the Burundi I came to know.
Meeting Members
When we arrived to visit the first Savings Group, we were met with a wash of colour, jubilation, singing and dancing. It felt like the entire village had come out to meet us.
Savings Group greeting us as visitors in Burundi.
We, the visitors, were invited to observe a Savings Group meeting take place. Completely led by the community themselves, it was awe-inspiring to see how they’d developed strategies to enable transparency and build trust. A book-keeping table had been drawn up on a chalkboard for all to see, each member identified by a number; the Group’s chairwoman recorded the same information into the Group’s ledger; while the treasurer collected the savings as each member was called to the front to declare and deposit the amount they were saving that week. For full disclosure, the treasurer held up the money collected before placing it in the ‘savings’ basket before him. At the end of proceedings, all three records (the chalkboard, Group’s ledger and actual money collected) were reconciled and compared to check that they aligned. This process of roll call and money handling was then repeated for each of the other financial activities of the Group: loan repayments, loan requests and making contributions towards the Group’s ‘social fund’.
Then, one-by-one, members stepped forward to share how being part of the Savings Group had changed their lives. My heart, once again, began to sing.
Images of a Savings Group meeting in Burundi.
“What I learnt [from Savings Group training], I did, but I didn’t just keep it to myself, I shared it with others. In this Savings Group, we all have talents and we have chosen not to bury them. We have used our talents and are living on the benefits as a result.”
“In my life, I’d never even touched 50,000 Burundian Francs at once before - then I received that and much more when I borrowed a loan from my Group. My husband now respects and values me.”
“My family can live because of the bike I bought through my Savings Group. I use it as a taxi. From the money I earn from my bicycle taxi, I can provide for my family AND save to prepare for the future too. I have also been able to buy a goat from the share-out interest and money I have saved. If I can buy a goat, why not a cow? Now I can have bigger dreams!”
Thereafter, every Group we visited, we heard story-upon-story of transformation and empowerment. Each testimony was shared with joy and thanksgiving - first to God, then the community facilitator who trained the Group, followed by the Mothers’ Union (our in-country partners) for training the facilitator and finally to Five Talents for enabling the programme to take place. Rachel, Five Talents CEO, likened the programme to a table - each of the legs (the members, the facilitator, MU Burundi, Five Talents & supporters) holding up the table top (the programme) and glued together by God.
Final Reflections
“In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps.”
Proverbs 16:9
Throughout the trip, this verse came to me. Despite unexpected hurdles that took our plans off course (eg. punctured tyre, fuel shortages and sickness), grace and peace followed and the eventual path we were led along far exceeded any expectations we had. The members we met further echoed this as they spoke of God’s hand upon their hopes (or plans). Time and time again, members told us that through the programme - a blessing from God as they referred to it - their plans came into fruition in ways beyond their imagination. This trip reminded to expect the unexpected and rejoice in that unknown.