Koboko District is host to 4,913 refugees based on refugee and asylum seekers demographic released by United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in October 2018, with refugees hosted across 8 villages of Waju I, II, III, Adranga, Adologo, Lukujo, Ponyura and Kuku. AFOD-Uganda in partnership with WFP is implementing a Cash Based transfer in Lobule settlements, Koboko District, West Nile Region where each refugee receives a cash assistance of 31,000 Uganda shillings per month. In cycle 11 of November 2018, AFOD served a total of 850 households, 4875 individuals (2,925 females and 1,950 males) with 151,125,000 Uganda shillings representing 99.61% of the planned total population served. To complement the cash distribution, AFOD equips the refugees with financial Literacy skills with a focus on; budgeting, wise money management and savings skills.
Photo credit: AFOD cash team:
Caption: Asakaita savings group members
Denis a 30 year old secretary of ASAKAITA savings group in Adolongo cluster, zone B tells a story about his savings group, “this savings group was started on 27/11/2017 with a total of 30 members (9 male and 21 female) who save 10,000 Uganda shillings per person weekly. The group consists of only cash beneficiaries who are Congolese. We have managed to save 9,376,000/= Uganda shillings and accrued an interest of 8,894,000/= with a 20% interest per month making a total amount of 18,270,000/= that we just shared in November 2018. We are looking to invest our savings by buying chairs for hire and a grinding mill in order to get more profits.
When asked about the source of the money they save and the benefits they have got from the saving group, Mary who came to Uganda as a refugee on 19/10/2013 aged 56 years said, 80% of our savings come from casual labor i.e. we go and work on the farms of the host and the money we get, we take to our savings group and 20 % of the rest of money is from our entitlement”.
The chairperson of the group said, “Through the savings, we have managed to get loans and investing in agriculture, used part of it for paying school fees, invested in business and health care. Due to cooperation, many members are able to learn about record keeping. We learnt the idea of savings through AFOD cash team that have given us financial literacy education, to this we say, ”savings is our ray of hope in Uganda“.
Gadhafi a 46 years old refugee who came to Uganda on 30/10/2013 and a member of the group said, ”Before joining the group, our income was so low, we had no access to loans to solve our problems and poor money management and record keeping was a problem. But thanks to AFOD for the financial literacy education given to us during sensitization, mobilization and pre-address usually done on cash distribution days, we now have the knowledge, will and ability teach others”.
