Women's Self-Help Group Invest in Each Other's Future in the Village of Lalo

Etanish, an Ethiopian woman with a red headscarf and yellow shirt with stripes talking passionately about her Women’s Self-Help Group.

“If I didn’t have the help of my group, my husband would have died.”

This past February, we met Etanish, a member of her local Women's Self-Help Group in the village of Lalo. Etanish shared how her group has impacted her and her family- she explained that her husband was seriously injured from a fall and needed hospitalization and treatment. Unable to pay for medical expenses, she asked her self-help group for a loan in order to pay for his care. 

When she returned from the hospital, women from her group helped her during that difficult time. Overcome with gratitude, Etanish spoke highly about the women in her group and how they have helped her over the years.

 “...they are like family to me…it means so much to me that they were there for me.”  

The ripple effect of women’s self-help groups is transformative to women, their families, and the larger community. Women’s self-help groups are lifelines to so many women in the communities we serve. 

Etanish (far left) is smiling and holding a baby goat in her arms. She is gathered with 18 women from her Women’s Self-Help Group. The women are all smiling and holding onto an additional seven goats they purchased.

To date, some of Etanish’s women’s self-help group’s accomplishments include:

• Purchasing and distributing 12 goats to 12 members

• Purchasing oxen and selling for profit.

• Starting small businesses selling coffee, vegetables, and ginger