RN has been in existence for 15 years now and the core business that rolled out at inception, in 2005, was the self-help group and the self-help concept. We believe in helping people identify their needs in their community and assisting them in achieving this with no hand-outs and utilizing their own locally available resources. Women are heavily encouraged to attend the workshops given in order for them to learn and ultimately become co-breadwinners or breadwinners. It is with a great sense of pride to see people adopting the concept and seeing improvement in their lives. Below are somewhat of a testimonial from two members of self-help groups. Note that they are written in the first person.

“My name is Bridget Kapale, I am 32 years old and I live in Kapule Village. I joined the Self-Help Group in August 2019. I had nothing before I joined but from the time I joined this group, it has changed my life and standard of living. I had no capital for business but for now I have managed to send my children to school every term. So I thank Response Network for bringing his opportunity in my life.”

“My name is Leader Kasamu from Tweende SHG Group. I joined the group 3 years ago. When I started saving, I borrowed K300 to buy village chickens which I purchased at K15 each. Altogether the chickens I bought were 20 and were small at the time. I waited some time for them to grow and I was feeding them with locally found sunflower cake. After three months, I sold them at K35 each which incurred K700 altogether. I then returned the money borrowed and the 10% interest. With the remaining amount of money, I bought other chicks. I am so happy I can take my children to school and eat well with my children and my husband.“

You read it for yourselves folks, the self-help concept when adopted with commitment can change and improve so many lives akin to Bridget and Leader. To learn more about self-help, head to our newly revamped website at responsenetwork.org!