Diana Namutebi, 28, has always been an organized woman. She takes good care of her home and business and always presents herself in a neat fashion. She had dreamed of opening a vegetable stall business, and was passionate about this being an opportunity to better the lives of her three children. She had requested some capital from her husband in the amount of UGX 100k ($28), but he was unable to provide it.
While she struggled to feed her children and was losing hope in the situation, Diana heard from a neighbor who told her about Street Business School. The SBS trainings were going to be conducted through phone calls! Diana felt empowered to take the next step. She learned valuable skills used to progress her business plan, so she began with the foundational principle of managing personal finances to save for her business.
After awhile, she thought that she could start saving UGX 2k ($0.55) from the UGX 10k ($2.75) her husband used to leave her for daily home food, locally known as “ez’akameeza.” She saved up to UGX 40k ($11) and decided to invest in a small stand.
In a few months and with a lot of hard work, Diana constructed a makeshift structure to expand her vegetable stall and she added a variety of vegetables. “I joined a savings group where I saved enough to upgrade my business from a stand to a bigger stall,” Diana says with a smile on her face.
Today, Diana notes that she is happy with the progress she has made in her life. She can feed her family and ease the financial stress on her husband. She also managed to buy her kids a triple decker bed from the profits she made in this business so they could sleep comfortably. She hopes to provide an education for her children and hopes they can study at very good schools.
Diana is very grateful to Street Business School for empowering women. “Women can now make a good living and not be undermined by anyone who believes we only belong in the kitchen.”
Diana continues to save UGX 10k ($2.75) weekly from her profits because her dream is to own a big grocery store in future. With her passion and the pace at which her business is growing, her dream will certainly come true!