It is a bright hot and sunny day when Baraka Ali and her daughter had this conversation under the century old Baobab tree in their yard in Tchadoua, a village in the South-East of Niger. It is year 2003, and Baraka’s daughter, Ramatou Jacqueline Jean-Pierre, is asked by her parents to drop out of school and get married after she passed her primary school exam. Ramatou is depressed. She asks her mother to let her continue her education and support her. As they seat cleaning the millet that they will pound for the evening porridge, Ramatou could not take it anymore.
“Mother, you know that I do not want to get married. I want to finish my education and maybe become a doctor someday” says Ramatou.
“My daughter, what are you talking about? Your father gave his approval for your wedding. We have to honor our engagement. Put this in your head, you will get marry” continues Baraka.
“I do understand it mother, but I’m too young to get married now. It will only ruin my life and I can have serious health problems if I ever give birth at the age of 12 years old”, Ramatou tells her mother, with tears in her eyes and her voice shaking.
Ramatou looks down at her feet, closes her eyes and tries to regain her composure. She then realizes she is shaking uncontrollably. Baraka recalls now that at the local hospital the doctor told her if the community did not let their girls finish education, only men will be in the delivery room.
Recalling the doctor’s words and seeing her daughter’s agony, Baraka understands that her daughter is still a girl, not a spouse and that she has to finish growing up. She takes a deep breath and takes Ramatou in her arms to calm her down. She starts caressing Ramatou’s braided hair and kisses her on the forehead. She makes her mind to help her daughter but then she remembers that education has a cost. She lets out a heavy sigh. She faces Ramatou and looks her in the eye.
“My daughter, I do not have the money to pay for your education” replies Baraka
“I can attend a public school, it is free” said Ramatou.
Hearing the determination in Ramatou’s voice, Baraka feels her own determination well up in her. “I must help my daughter she thinks to herself. Maybe I can raise the money to put her through school. Maybe if I sell my things it will be enough. She wasn’t sure it would work but she knew she had to try, for her daughter.”
Photo: Rakiétou HASSANE MOSSI
Baraka started selling all her belongings to be able to pay the expenses related to her children’s education. She was a point where she had nothing in hand. She was desperate. One day, CARE agents stopped in the village she lives in and explain to them the village savings and loan association (VSLA) activity, commonly called Mata Masu Dubara (MMD) or Women on the Move. It is an activity involving women coming together and organizing themselves by savings a small amount of money weekly, about one dollar each, in a box with three locks and a whole system letting them loan from and start an income generating activity. Baraka was a little sceptic at first but was willing to try as she was at a point she didn’t have anything and still wanted to help her children with their education.
Taking a loan from her VSLA group helped Baraka buy items for children from a wholesaler and she would resale it with interest, as she had a training that helped her understand how to save and invest and make benefit from a small income generating activity. From those activities, Baraka was able to buy a farm and goats and sheep.
Now, fourteen years later, Baraka has learned how to read write and has been so active within the VSLA that she has become the president of the MMD federation of their region. She was also elected and is now a counselor to the Mayor.
Ramatou was able to continue her studies and become a nurse.
Photo: Rakiétou HASSANE MOSSI
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