Vision Fund Builds Optimism for Widow
As I traveled to meet a Vision Fund beneficiary, I knew I was going to interact with yet another person that had received a loan and had their lives improved. Little did I know that I was going to meet an extraordinary woman that had gone through so much pain and pov-erty. Her determination and hard work helped her survive and endure these hardships.
Janet Mukalutamu, 55, lives in Muwangoi Sub County, Kiboga district. She is the mother of 11 children, but unfortunately has lost three of them. When she was still healing from the pain of losing her children, she also lost her husband. These deaths are all still very fresh and she becomes very emotional as she talks about them. With so much pain, she quickly drifts and tells her story of turning this pain into a story of hope. Thanks to Vision Fund, she has seen herself grow financially due to being granted a loan, and how this has giv-en her hope to keep living.
“When I lost my children and husband a few years ago to a fever, I was very poor with hardly anything to eat. I could neither take them to a good hospital nor give them a descent burial. I saw all of them die one by one and I looked on helplessly as I could not do much to save them. This broke my heart and I was very pessi-mistic in life,” says Janet.
With much grief, Janet decided to work hard so that she would not lose her other children to treatable dis-eases. She also needed a way to get her family’s basic needs met, such as food, shelter, clothing and medical insurance. For her to be able to work, she needed money, so she decided to go to Vision Fund and get a loan. She received a loan, using her relative’s vehicle as security. From the loan, she was able to start up a bakery, buy cows and a small plot of land. She employed her son, Geoffrey Bizumungu, to run the bakery business and sell milk and butter from her cows. The proceeds from the milk and butter helped provide her a daily income. With this, she began to realize that her life was changing. Now, she is able to pay school fees for three of her children, open a grocery store for her married daughter and support her other married children as they strive to become financially stable.
Janet has paid back the loan and she is now in the process of getting another one. She chose Vision Fund because of its low interest rates and approachable people. She further says that with Vision Fund, a recipient is given an opportunity to repay in installments as they are being taught how to pay back the loan in a timely manner.
“I might have lost some of my children and husband, but at least I am able to live a comfortable life which lessens my pain. Vision Fund has been my greatest comfort,” says Janet.