The Sigida Keneyali Microfinance Program!

Mike has been hard at work the past couple of weeks. Having finally found a building to rent for a center, he set to work cleaning out the spiders inside, painting and cementing. The Microfinance Center is located right on the main road through Sourakabougou, the very poor part of Sikoroni (actually, it’s pretty close to where we hope to build the new clinic). I wish I had pictures of the area around the new center so you could see just how stunning it now looks! It has become a beacon of color and cleanliness, if you will just take my word for it. Maybe the before, during, and after pictures can give you some idea of the effort Mike put in. I will also direct you to notice the flowering plants in front of the beautifully crafted sign. Nice touch, Mike! The drawing on the door and the sign is the tentative new logo for Sigida Keneyali which we recently designed with a graphic artist here. The butterfly-like symbol means strength in unity.

Now that Mike has the center, he and Niang and some key community members have been putting together a board of women who will accept applications from women in the community who want loans for new businesses/enterprises. It is our hope that by providing some start-up capital, these women will be able to make money themselves in their new work while paying back their loans. This fight against poverty here is a big step in fighting for health. Hopefully the first applications will be accepted soon, and once the organization gets government approval, the microfinance program can give its first loans!