May 10th Fwd: Hopes & dreams to make ends meet, due to climatic change! - some figures. May 11, 2011

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Samwel Kongere <jambita1@yahoo.com>Date: 10 May 2011 07:11
Subject: Re: Hopes & dreams to make ends meet, due to climatic change! - some figures.

Hello Pam,
I tried to make some contacts across our border with Uganda and intercountry trade could be helpful as well. £ 200 could help in starting the food trade as well.
Thanks for sharing my mails!
Samwel.

On Fri Apr 29th, 2011 8:28 AM Etc/GMT+12 Pamela McLean wrote:

>Forwarded details of proposal to help women bring food to Rusinger Island to
>re-sell while there are food shortages. Please share.  (Sam see my reply at
>the very end, following all the other older emails.)
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>On 20 April 2011 16:31, Samwel Kongere <jambita1@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>> Ok Pam,
>> Our island is Rusinga about 21,000 people,
>>
>>  and fruits, maize, bananas, rice, can be cheaply got from Kisii and Oyugis
>> markets.
>> I therefore talk of mini truck supply  of  maize or rice or banana the
>> hills there make them rich agriculturably, this which can cost Kes: 40,000
>> to Kes: 80,000 and this will be resold by 200 or so women. The supply could
>> be stocked at the booster kiosk as a distribution or supplied along the
>> ringroad and source at a profit and this will help in circulated food
>> rations in and outside Rusinga across to the mainland to Mbita market. At
>> the Mbita market most people living there are employed unlike rural areas.
>> The children might drop due to meals, school levies and uniforms.
>>
>> Through mamamikes reachs us as credit not favourable, Western Union Money
>> transfer and moneygram is available preferable and reliable.
>>
>> Thanks Pam for getting the information from us is continueously shared and
>> communicated across.
>> Six girls in high school could discontinue', studies in second term because
>> their parents pay fees through farm produce but the much spent on planting
>> will not revolve due to unfavourable weather conditions. I am ready to reply
>> more information if there is need.
>> Good day!
>> Samwel.
>>
>> On Wed Apr 20th, 2011 2:05 AM Etc/GMT+12 Pamela McLean wrote:
>>
>> >Ref - Climate Change and problems that Sam and his community are facing
>> due
>> >to lack of rain. Please share this with appropriate contacts.
>> >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>> >Sam, friends and contacts
>> >
>> >All -
>> >I am copying Sam's email below.  It makes a suggestion for  possible
>> helpful
>> >action, given the local problems his community is facing as a result of
>> >failure with the rains. I don't know exactly who will see this. I don't
>> >know if there will be any resulting actions, but at least his message will
>> >be more visible.
>> >
>> >Sam -
>> >Please will you give more information about what you are thinking. Are you
>> >saying that if the community had a little capital then people could buy
>> >additional food from KIsii of Oyugis and then they would sell it locally?
>> >Are you saying this would make a profitable small business for some
>> people?
>> >It would also mean that local people had more food available. Have I
>> >understood you properly?
>> >
>> >Are you serious that this food buying and selling could be profitable? I
>> am
>> >wondering how it would work. I suppose that everyone is having problems
>> >getting food now the local supply is failing. Perhaps there are some
>> people
>> >who usually buy local produce (and do not grow or sell any)who will have
>> >money to buy food, but cannot find any to buy - so they would be
>> customers.
>> >What of the people who usually grow their own food, and sell some of the
>> >surplus at the market. I am thinking this - if the crops are failing and
>> >therefore they have nothing to sell at the market - how will they have
>> money
>> >to buy the food people are selling?
>> >
>> >I am not making any promises about finding money - but the more
>> information
>> >I have the better the chances are that something may be done.  What is the
>> >smallest amount of money that would enable you to arrange one of these
>> food
>> >buying trips? If the first trip was successful would that mean the money
>> >would come back to you again. Would the money keep going around and
>> around?
>> >After the money came back from the first trip then could you lend it again
>> >to arrange a second trip, and after that would there be money for a third
>> >trip and so on?
>> >
>> >What size community are we talking about here? Are you talking about a few
>> >women going just to fill a few stalls with edibles, or are you talking
>> truck
>> >loads?
>> >
>> >I remember that when there was the post election turmoil in Kenya money
>> was
>> >sent by mamamikes. If we got soem money would that be the best way to send
>> >it?
>> >
>> >You say children will be dropping out of school. Please explain why. Is it
>> >because there will not be money for fees etc, or because they will not be
>> >well enough to go to school, or a mixture of these reasons, or what?
>> >
>> >Please continue to send me information and I will continue to pass your
>> >information on.
>> >
>> >Pamela
>> >---------- Forwarded message ----------
>> >From: Samwel Kongere <jambita1@yahoo.com> Date: 17 April 2011 10:16
>> >Subject: Re: Fwd: As we find hopes & dreams to make ends meet, due to
>> >climatic change!
>> >
>> >Dear Pam,
>> >As a community hope, we do thought of buying edibles crops as far as Kisii
>> >or Oyugis to substantiate our food stock. There is a booster Kiosk where
>> >women can the products for profit as well.
>> >As you discuss with friends, well wishers, charities, and others, many
>> >children will be dropping out of school come second term which begins on
>> May
>> >2nd 2011.
>> >Thanks very much for replying and discussing.
>> >Samwel.
>> >
>> >
>> http://dadamac.posterous.com/as-we-find-hopes-dreams-to-make-ends-meet-due
>>
>
>Sam,
>
>Thanks for supplying this information. I'm reposting this on dadamac's
>posterous (it has been around for longer than collaborators connect so has
>more people reading it). I am sorry for the delay. You email arrived soon
>after post election violence broke out in NIigeria, and my attention was so
>much with our friends there that I missed your email. I am sorry.
>
>*Exchange rate*
>
>I have checked the exchange rate with CoinMill.com - The Currency
>Converter<http://coinmill.com/>and it says that today 80,000 KS is
>576.31UKP. So you are looking for
>between 288.16 UKP and 576.31UKP plus bank charges - or whatever charges and
>exchange rate difference would happen with Western Union Money transfer or
>moneygram.
>
>
>Are you suggesting that the money would be lent to about 200 women and it
>would enable them to run petty trading businesses reselling the food? Who
>would arrange the minivan and the purchasing in Kisii and Oyugis markets?
>Who would administer the loans? Is there some registered local organisation
>that could be trusted to administer this project? Would it be possible to
>send a photo and an email each week to give progress reports - telling the
>problems as well as the successes of the project, to that people could learn
>from this enterprise?
>
>You say "Through mamamikes reachs us as credit not favourable, Western Union
>Money transfer and moneygram is available preferable and reliable." I
>imagine that you mean the exchange rate is not good. I think this is also
>true of WU and perhaps moneygram too. Also of course if we are trying to
>raise money we need to consider the actual cost of sending the money. If we
>did rasie teh money we sould need to think of those costs too. What of
>sending as a bank transfer. Is there a bank that could be used for a bank
>transfer?
>
>Anyhow, we do not have the money at present. Let me be clear, are you saying
>that you need a loan, or are you seeking a gift? Are you saying that if the
>money was sent to Rusinga Island then:
>
>   - you can arrange to buy the van load of produce
>   - you can arrange for around 200 women to have buy the produce on credit
>   and then they pay you back at the start of the next day when they come to
>   buy more produce,
>   - this sounds similar to a mircofinance scheme - but a bit of a risky one
>   because everyone is relying on the safe journey of the minivan.
>
>It would probably be easier to find a loan for you than it would be to find
>a gift.  Do you (or your group) have any knowledge of running microfinance,
>or small businesses on credit? It is not easy. The administration takes a
>lot of work.
>
>I do not want to raise your hopes unduly on what I can do about this. As I
>explained to Ramadhan, you should not imagine that Dadamac is some big NGO
>with funds to allocate. We just share information - but if we do have
>accurate informatin it is a more hopeful that if there is no information. It
>is a possible start so - I am sharing this information.
>
>If you have any clear information about how this would work, how it would be
>administered in practice, that would increase our chance of finding money.
>
>Pam