Alright, so I had an excellent two day training with a group of women who are trying to develop into a full-fledged business. They are spinning wool and mohair (the hair from goats) into spun yarn and then selling it to weaving groups in Maseru. Most of our work the past two weeks has been to introduce the idea of a business based on the costs it takes to produce wool.
One of the most telling moments was beginning the training with a question. I asked the women what it cost to travel to Maseru and purchase the uncleaned wool then to bring it back to Semonkong. In their analysis of those costs they determined as a group that it cost at around R300. Once we wrote it out, however, and thought through the trip it ended up at about R400. The costs for transport were completely forgotten once the women arrived in Maseru. Similarly, the costs for food wasn't well determined.
Of all the concepts, the women thought record keeping was most helpful in depicting their money's activity. On the first day we introduced the concept of tracking the groups money through keeping a record book. On the second day, as a way to evaluate their understanding of what I talked about the day before, I had the women fill in a record book for the month of April. It took nearly an hour + but it was very successful in demonstrating the ideas we previously discussed and their level of understanding. They did this with great accuracy and worked very well together, even teaching one woman the activity since she was not present the day before. We used this record in April to then make a budget for May that reflected their concern for the speed with which their money disappeared.
Something I already expected and tried to cater to was the fact that farmers, like many people, like to “do” things rather than just be told about them on a superficial level. Introducing an idea and then allowing them to practice the idea provided the needed chance for the idea to solidify into a real and practical activity. More than anything, everything was made relevant to each woman. Instead of the typical business training that included a large specific set of vocabulary and equations that attempted to calculate hourly pay and the such, relevance was prioritized to include the women's expereinces. What do they make per one kilogram of spun wool and what costs are included in each kg made the women think about what they spend their money on.
This seems really boring and dorky but I'm just extremely excited about these two days. The excitement stems from the women's energy and participation. I could tell immediately that they wanted to know and cared about the information I tried to communicate in Sesotho. It is amazing that they worked so hard to stick with me as I spoke Sesotho throughout the training. Everything was spoken with a hope that they would follow better if I tried to use their language. The simplicity of my sesotho, something similar to a child, may have aided in their understanding because I didn't reach for words outside their understanding. Thank goodness Palesa was there both days to help translate for these women!