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 Two main focuses of economy empowerment were put on the development of savings and loan activity and micro finance institution and on that of micro business. These two focuses are connected and of support to each other.
• Savings and Loan activity and Micro Finance Institution
Savings and load activity is an entry point into the effort of empowering women headed household. Hence, all women headed household groups that have been formed are motivated to start their savings and loan activity on basis of cooperative system. In order that they can manage the activity well, they are trained in various training programs either in class or with regular facilitation. There are three kinds of in-class training; group management, accounting and leadership trainings.
During this period, there were 309 savings and loan administrators having attended training on management of savings and loan group and 474 persons having learned accounting. In addition, 492 savings and loan group leaders were intensively trained and 220 micro finance institution administrators were trained for developing their institutions.
This process resulted in satisfying result as seen in the positive growth of the number of savings and loan groups since the beginning till the end of 2008, with average growth 12% a year. These groups also had successfully established 31 micro finance institutions. They had been able to collect fund independently with average increase 16% a year. Until the end of 2008, the amount of savings that was accumulated from the entire groups reached IDR 1,769,402,717, consisting of main savings, compulsory savings and voluntary savings.
This amount is very big considering that Pekka members actually come from the poorest class in the society. As a matter of fact, this has ruined the myth that poor people are not able to make savings.
In addition, the amount of loan also tended to increase every year. Based on data, the accumulated amount of loan in the end of 2008 reached IDR 17,290,345,050. Every year the average increase of the accumulated loan amount was 16.5%.
The capital of savings and loan group was obtained from the members’ savings and Direct Community Assistance (BLM) fund provided for this project. Until the end of 2008, there were two terms of BLM given to their savings and loan groups. In the period of 2001-2004 it was recorded that BLM in the amount of IDR 5,220,401,170 for productive economic business activities had been given to Pekka groups and in the period of 2005-2008 the fund was distributed to them reached IDR 5,448,071,405.
Savings and loan group activity resulted in service money that became the groups’ income and could be shared to the members in the end of every year as surplus (Sisa Hasil Usaha (SHU)). As a whole the service of the groups also grew about 16% a year. In the end of 2008, the total service of savings and loan groups was worth of IDR 998,312,803.
• Micro Business (UKM)
Economy empowerment through development of micro business for women headed household was conducted in various ways including facilitation and business training. There were four kinds of training to support the development of micro business, i.e. entrepreneurship training, business management training, business technical skill training and business consulting. This period recorded that 450 people had attended entrepreneurship and 346 attended business management training. Business technical skill training was given to comply with the need and potential of every business in particular area. At least there were 52 technical skill training having been conducted by the National Secretariat of PEKKA with participants as many as 1,346 people. Besides these trainings, business consulting had also been given to 55 people.
These trainings resulted in the growth and development of personal and collective businesses. Until the end of 2008 there were 47 units of collective that were managed by women headed household groups. In addition, the groups had also been able to develop business partnership to support their businesses. At least there were 40 organizations becoming partners of their collective businesses, who contributed in developing their businesses by giving them various kinds of assistance including trainings and exhibition places. These groups had also run exhibitions for 33 times at many levels, from regional to national levels. |
