The past week at The Kindu Trust in numbers

145 children ate a hot meal

87 children received school support

71 young people used the Kindu library

70 parents received bank books

10 home visits were made by the sponsorship team

7 Kindu families received medical support

Kindu mothers line up to pick up their monthly sponsorship!

Kindu Families Start Saving!

The Kindu Trust is pleased to say that many of our beneficiaries are opening up bank accounts and starting to save; many of them for the first time in their lives!

The ASCI representative logs savings with a Kindu parent!

Following a presentation by our General Manager in Ethiopia to a meeting of Gondar NGOs and GOs on the work of The Kindu Trust, we formed an alliance with the local Amhara Credit and Saving Institute (ACSI). Our partnership aims to facilitate small scale banking for our beneficiaries by opening an account and starting to save.  On the first date of every month our beneficiaries around Gondar visit the Kindu Trust compound to collect their sponsorship. Our new partnership means that a representative from ASCI joins the Kindu Trust for this day to enable parents to put their sponsorship money directly into their savings account.

Starting in February of this year, by March 73 Kindu families were already saving on a regular basis! They did this without encouragement, but of their own volition when informed that the service was available to them. Most families started saving around 10 Ethiopian Birr (30p) per month but many have already increased that amount to as much as 50 Birr (£1.50) per month! Being part of the institution and having a savings account means financial security for the families, as well as enabling them to earn interest and borrow money in the future; a future which is now looking towards financial independence more than ever.

 Ethiopia Fact

Many people will know that coffee was first discovered in the Kaffa area of Ethiopia. What you many not know is that its discovery is thanks to goats. The coffee plant only became of interest after a shepherd’s curiosity was roused when his goats became hyperactive after eating the plant.