Self Help Groups

In India it has been said that:

to educate a man is to educate an individual,
to educate a woman is to educate a family

Widow with hens.

This Tiger Widow entered a Self-Help-Group and practiced small savings. She then took out a small loan and purchased some hens. This now gives her an income by selling eggs in the local market. She can repay the loan and make profit.

There are many women with similar stories who have benefited greatly from joining the groups. Even small loans of €10 makes a huge difference to these families. They all have their own stories to tell. Sinead with widow and rice.

Widow with child with rickets. Self help group. Widow with Sinead, son, and pump.

Our partner in the field has involved 1500 women in the Self-Help-Groups up to April 2005. In the next year we plan to involve another 1000 women in very poor and remote areas of the Sundarbans Islands such as Nagenabad and Patharprathima. In these places there is a large number of families whose livelihoods are derived from the nearby forest reserve or from prawn seed collection. As a result these families are in danger of tiger and crocodile attacks. We seek to form Self-Help-Groups in these areas and thereby prevent future loss of life.

Self help group. Widow with sons.

What does your money achieve?

A loan of €40 gives a family the chance to construct a pond to start up a fresh-water-fishery. They can sell the surplus fish.
A loan of €30 enables a family to start a small business selling articles around the islands and in the markets
A loan of €20 enables a family to build a poultry coup and purchase geese, hens or other birds for egg production and sale in the local market.
A loan of €20 enables a family to lease and till a piece of land, buy some seeds and plant a vegetable garden for the family and market. They can plan for the lean season and fetch high prices.
A loan of €10 enables a widow to purchase a goat or a pig. She can then breed animals and sell the surplus.

Self Help Group Formation

The first step is to motivate the communities and form a group of about 15 women of similar savings capacity. Group leaders are appointed and rules are drawn up. Groups meet monthly.

The women are introduced to the practice of saving money. Even if it is only a handful of rice each day, it can lead to monthly savings. They learn about loans and how to write their names on their savings books.

3. After a year of regular savings they are eligible for a loan. It is generally to be used to generate an income for the family or widow. They themselves maintain their own regulations concerning the loans and repayments. BTS staff monitor the groups and may intervene in certain cases.

In time, the women become more aware of:

Micro Savings and Loans
Family Health and Planning
Sanitation and Hygiene
Importance of Child Education
Alternative Livelihoods Planning
Income-Generating Programmes
Nutritional Gardening
Good Farm Management Practice
Pisciculture
Social Issues
Community Awareness and Development
Aspects of their Environment

Through time various groups come together and discuss common agendas. There is an annual group leaders meeting and quarterly regional meetings. BTS staff visit the groups frequently and maintain and monitor accounts for each group. They organise training and loans.

Families in Sundarbans who participate do not have to risk their lives by going into the forest. This is how we are...

Serving the People to Save the Tiger

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