For years, Jean d’Amour Uyisabye lived in a rented old and tiny house in Nyagisozi sector in Nyaruguru District. He always struggled to put food on the table.Every day, he wondered what miracle would push him out of that complex situation.But early last year, Uyisabye decided to join hands with about 30 other vulnerable residents in his village and, together, they formed a group they later named Abanyamurava (The Courageous) with the aim of working towards uplifting their living conditions.Each week, each one of them contributed Rwf500 that they deposited on an account they opened in a local savings and credit cooperative (Sacco). Later they started using the money to  give out loans to members who were in need of funds to implement short-term projects or resolve impromptu problems.By joining the informal credit and saving group, or Ikimina as the members of the group and other similar associations call them, Uyisabye expected to put an end to his deplorable situation.Two years down the road, Uyisabye now leads a new life."This group has transformed my life and my family,” he says. Uyisabye says he has since achieved alot. "I have my own house that I built thanks to being part of this group,” Uyisabye says. "I have also have domestic animals that I rear that have improved my life.”Uyisabye puts the value of his house to over Rwf500,000. He has two goats, a pig, and chicken. He is also planning to acquire a cow."If I was not part of this group, I am sure I wouldn’t have been able to realise such tremendous achievements in my life.”"The Ikimina magic”"Through our Ikimina, I have been able to save money and learn from others,” Uyisabye says.Apart from his investments, Uyisabye says he also has  about Rwf 50,000 on his account.Under all their variants, Ibimina operate on the basis of contributions by their members mainly from the same village. They request no legal existence approval of the central bank for their activities.Each group is usually made up of up to 30 members, including both men and women. Its activities, including lending money to members, rely on mutual trust between them. They do not lend money to non-members and each gets loans according to their contributions.Contributions are paid every week and range between Rwf200 and Rwf500 per share per week. Each member can pay up to four shares a week.The money is then deposited on the group’s account in a local savings and credit cooperative and can be withdrawn only when the group is to lend it to members or when members want to make any payment such as for health insurance or school fees.Every member who borrows pays back with some interest.After every 12 months, members meet and share their annual interests, sometimes getting up to Rwf 100,000 per individual.The groups are hailed to be instrumental in encouraging the savings culture, especially in rural areas. During the recently concluded Savings Week, Finance minister Claver Gatete, noted that savings directly feed into household future incomes and development. When there is a critical mass of households that are sensitised and actively save, it creates bigger latitude of the propensity to invest and in the long-run national development, he said."If you want a better life for yourself and your family, you must save for the future. If you have a job, there is no guarantee that you will have that job tomorrow. But if you have saved, you guarantee that there are no big risks and shocks when you leave the job. This is something we are trying to educate Rwandans about.”By June this year, savings deposits in the country had increased by 11.5 per cent, according to Finance ministry figures while Sacco deposits, by June 2013, stood at Rwf940 billion, representing an increase of 31.5 per cent.The government’s target is to reach savings of 20 per cent of the GDP by 2020.Ibimina are being encouraged by local governments and have received support from local and international non-governmental organisations such as Global Communities, Care International and Women for Women International, among others. The NGOs are supporting them, mainly in terms of capacity building through training in management skills to help members of the group get skills on how to properly manage their assets.Members of the informal saving groups say they are benefiting from them as far as saving and investment is concerned.Christine Utabazi, 43, a resident of Nyumba cell in Gishamvu Sector of Huye District says through Ibimina, she has learnt how to plan and manage her resources. The mother of two says she used to live a deplorable life which improved when she joined a local group, Turwanye Ubukene, about two years ago.Utabazi attributes her improved livelihood to better spending habits. "I always spent all the money and hoped to get more the following day. Whenever I failed to get money I went hungry the whole day,” Utabazi recalls."Before, it was all about making  money and spending the whole of it in one day without caring for the next day. But, today, I manage my money well, provide for my family and save for the future”For Utabazi, life transformation was a far-fetched dream but now it has become a reality.Apart from a local bar she now runs, Utabazi has also invested in small-scale livestock farming."Saving is not about getting a lot of money. It is wisely using the little you have and spend when you have to,” Utabazi says.Jeannette Nyinawumuntu, 28, a primary school teacher in the rural Rusenge Sector of Nyaruguru District, said Ibimina is a wonderful path towards better livelihoods. After realising that her income as a teacher was meager, she joined other women in Gikunzi village, and together, they started a group they called Twiteze Imbere.Nyinawumuntu says she has borrowed money from the group on several occasions which she later invested in income generating activities."My life is steadily improving as a result of being part of the group,” she says.Spearheading investmentJudith Kankindi, a resident of Nyange cell,  Kibeho Sector of Nyaruguru District, has been a member of a local Ibimina for about one and half years now.She has secured loans from her group three times which she invested in vegetable farming for local markets. Each time she receives between Rwf10,000 and Rwf50,000 in loan.She also invests in her banana beer making scheme."Proceeds from my investment help me to fend for my seven-member family and service the loan,” Kankindi says."We are now better off than ever.”Faina Mukakayange, also a resident of Kibeho sector, is currently planning to build a modest commercial building after investing her money from the group in sorghum beer making and trading."I have already bought land at a tune of Rwf80,000 and I am planning to start the construction of the house soon,” the single mother said. Benefit to SaccosThough some might think the informal savings groups are posing a serious challenge to local micro-finance institutions and formal Savings and Credits cooperatives (Saccos), officials argue that to the contrary, the groups are contributing to the growth of the cooperatives.Gilbert Habyarimana, the Rwanda Cooperatives Agency (RCA) deputy director, says the groups have boosted membership to Saccos.Almost each group has an account in a local Sacco where they keep their contributions, Habyarimana said.Members of the informal saving groups are also encouraged to open accounts and many of them told this paper they had already done so."They cannot be a threat [to Saccos]. Instead, they are helping a lot in boosting the coops’ membership base,” Habyarimana said.