EASTERN PROVINCE

RWAMAGANA — The Rwamagana vice Mayor in charge of Social Affairs, Alphonsine Murekatete has commended women in the area for forming an association which she said has helped many of them get decent bedding materials.

Murekatete says the association Dusasirane Cooperative, has made a change in several women headed families in the district.

Talking to The New Times this week, she advised all women to come together if they want to realise their dreams.

The Dusasirane Cooperative started in Muhazi Sector, Rwamagana district by a group of women aimed at improving their living and accommodation conditions.

The women decided to pull together their resources in order to facilitate one member at a time to acquire her most pressing needs.

"It was a good initiative because a single woman would not afford to settle her needs the way she would in a group,” Murekatete says.

Adding, "It is a  women’s group composed of members sharing similar problems. They started with assisting one another buy necessities now they are purchasing assets such as  cows and building materials.”

Murekatete says the cooperative, has made tremendous achievements since its inception and it has now accumulated over Rwf.3 million in savings.

According to the vice Mayor, after observing the cooperative’s progress, the district embarked on a campaign to sensitise other sectors to form similar cooperatives.

The effect , she says, is that on average each cooperative which was set up has at least Rwf.2 million as liquid assets on  account.

Another cooperative which the vice mayor singled out was that of basket weavers. Income generation projects, she noted  should drive women to work hard to reduce poverty whose spillover should  reduce gender based violence.

"Every woman must know that it is up to her to ensure personal growth. Women should thus empower themselves by joining  cooperatives which would enable them acquire loans to boost their wealth creation drives,” she counsels.

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