Jackline Jelagat Kosgei, Salon owner & Farmer
Since sQuid Microfinance was introduced in Kenya, Uasin Gishu county is one of the four counties which was privileged to have had the project launched and rolled out. So much has been witnessed in terms of benefits brought by the microfinance project. Torochmoi community is one of the many communities in Uasin Gishu county who can attest to this. With education being the road to future success and prosperity of a community and the whole county, Torochmoi members holds this believe so dearly to their hearts too. Introduction of microfinance in their community became a major boost to their quest to eradicate poverty and educate their children.
The loan is mainly focused on ensuring the parents have a long-term sustainability support for the child’s education which in the long run boosts academic performance of the child. With a stable financial support from the parent, primary to secondary transition becomes much easier for their children.
Jackline Jelagat Kosgei, is a member of Charar group, Torochmoi community. She is a business lady who runs a salon in Torochmoi center. She also practices active farming where she does poultry keeping, dairy cow and small-scale crop farming.
Jackline is a beneficiary of sQuid Microfinance who has benefited from the loan offered to her. She is also a parent in the Torochmoi community and has one child in the school.
In November last year (2019), Jackline received a loan of kes 50,000 with a repayment plan of 12 monthly installments, and has since cleared the same as at September 2020.
The purpose of the loan was to:
Add stock to the salon - kes 20,000
Buy dairy feeds & vaccinations - kes 15,000
Boost poultry keeping by adding more chicken - kes 15,000
During our visit to her home and business location, Jackline had this to say;
“First, I would like to thank sQuid for a brilliant idea of bringing the microfinance initiative to our community. This has really boosted my business in a big way, I am now comfortably able to plan for my child’s education future since my business has been boosted and gives me daily income which ensures that my child does not lack anything needed for him to comfortably study in school. The child has also registered some improvements in his academics. I am also able to make my weekly contribution P.E.F which by the time my child is transitioning from primary to secondary he will do so without any financial challenges. I am happy to be a member of the microfinance initiative.”
Before Covid-19 outbreak, Jackline was active & consistent in weekly P.E.F contributions of up to kes 500 and was making loan repayments on weekly basis, but since the increase of Covid-19 in the country, which lead to closure of businesses and markets across the country, Jackline’s business was not spared, and was forced to close for sometime, therefore reducing her income. In the last few months, Jackline’s business has started to pick up again and she is optimistic that things will get back to normal real soon.
Despite this challenge which affected most of the microfinance beneficiaries, Jackline was able to clear her loan one month before the due date.
With this, her journey to prosperity, poverty eradication and her child’s dreams of becoming a better person in future is most certainly promised, all thanks to sQuid’s microfinance initiative.
