Empower. Transform.

Sustain

Sustain Micro Enterprises(SME) is a non-profit Microfinance organization that started in 2010

with a dedication to empower, transform and sustain the lives of the vulnerable women operating
small businesses in local communities. The organization is fully registered and incorporated as a
non-profit under registration number 172199. The organization is located in Uganda, JinjaBuikwe, Eastern region of Uganda.
The organization works specifically with the vulnerable groups of women in hard to reach and
underserved communities including widows, grandmothers, HIV infected mothers, Divorced
mothers and other categories of women vulnerability.
Sustain Micro Enterprises provides women with small loans ranging between $74-$1200. All
small loans are provided through the group methodology since the women do not have collateral
hence the group is used as security towards accessing all loans.
We fund several women businesses including retail shops businesses, brick-making businesses,
agricultural/farming businesses, grocery businesses, restaurant businesses, charcoal businesses,
second-hand cloth businesses, poultry businesses, livestock Businesses, small bakery businesses,
local brewing businesses, beauty salon businesses, water sale businesses, sand sale businesses,
drug shop businesses, tailoring business and many more.
How did Sustain Micro Enterprises Start?
Growing up in a community where women did not own property and were denied access to
financial freedom, Samuel Wanyagira was inspired to start Sustain Micro Enterprises Uganda to
help the vulnerable women regain their financial and social freedom.
In 2010, Samuel Wanyagira the Founder and Executive Director of Sustain Micro Enterprises
was inspired to start giving small loans using his savings to the vulnerable women in helping
them to attain financial access and freedom.
With only $113, Sustain Micro Enterprises was able to provide the first small loans to a group of
five vulnerable women in a remote village called Kikwanya. With $113, each member of the
group received a loan of $22.6 which they used to invest in their respective small businesses. To

monitor the small loans given out, we met weekly with the women to check on their businesses
and collect the repayments. With the good repayments from the group of five women, Samuel
was impressed and believed that the vulnerable women can repay their loans faithfully if helped
to join small community groups. Thus we moved out to mobilize resources for the women who
otherwise would not have accessed any loan just because they do not own collateral.
Today what started with only $113 for a group of five women in a local community has seen
Sustain Micro Enterprises grow to serve over 80 vulnerable women, Bringing financial freedom
and accessibility to many women who for long time had been denied this right and opportunity.
Sustain Micro Enterprises Board of Directors
Samuel Wanyagira-Executive Director
Samuel is the Founder and the Executive
Director of Sustain Micro Enterprises
Uganda. He grew up in a community where
the women were not respected, marginalized
and where the vulnerable women were
unable to acquire small loans from the
traditional commercial banks due to lack of
collateral. Samuel always dreamt to see a
world where vulnerable women could attain
financial freedom and access micro loans without collateral and his dream
is being achieved through Sustain Micro Enterprises Uganda. Samuel is a
graduate Social worker and Administrator, and he enjoys seeing small
businesses grow to successful and sustainable businesses.
Mary Batuwa Mukisa
Mary holds a bachelors degree in adult and community work
from Makerere University. She began her professional career,
mentoring and supporting the children and widows at Children of
Grace. Mary was led to Sustain Micro Enterprises by the needs of
the vulnerable women we serve. Over the past two years, Mary
has spent time helping vulnerable women at Sustain Micro
Enterprises in communities overcome ignorance, thrive in their
businesses and feed their children. She is looking forward to
continuing her efforts through Sustain Micro Enterprises to
helping the women towards a better life.

Emmanuel Buyinza
Emmanuel has worked with Sustain Micro Enterprises since 2012.
Emmanuel has a background in Entrepreneurship and spends most of his
time creating, researching and designing business materials that women
need to advance their businesses. He is very supportive to the staffs in
the development of business, financial and entrepreneurship materials
that the women use during their trainings. Emmanuel graduated with a
bachelors degree in Social work and social Administration from
Kampala International University, Uganda.

Namukwaya Sarah
Sarah has served as the Business Mentor Director and Accountant since
shortly after Sustain Micro Enterprises was founded. She works closely
with the Business Mentors. Sarah helps with procedures and tracking
the organizations finances. She works with the Business Mentors on
evaluating women businesses and loans and provides necessary
feedback to the Business Mentors about each individual borrower. She
also works hard to ensure that all women who apply for loans receive
them on time.
Our Vision:
We dream to see a Community where women businesses thrive to sustain lives. We believe that
the growth of women businesses will enhance their capacity to support and provide for their
families and increase household incomes.
Our Mission:
To empower, transform and sustain communities in Gods way through the provision of Finance,
Education, Social support and Business Opportunities.
Our Core Values:

Integrity
Accountability
Transparency

Positive Relationship
Stewardship

What we do
At Sustain Micro Enterprises, we take pride in being the first microfinance organization to work
in the most neglected and underserved communities in Uganda. Although Microfinance is our
core activity and program, Sustain Micro Enterprises also provides others services to achieve a
holistic transformation in the lives of the vulnerable women. The extra programs that our
organization does include Adult education and Reproductive Health support.
Provide Small Loans to Women in Business, Sustain Micro Enterprises offers micro loans to the
vulnerable women in hard to reach and underserved communities where most financial
institutions have neglected. Sustain Micro Enterprises provides all loans to the women without
security being provided but we use the group as security for the loans. Our loans are collateral
free because most of the vulnerable women do not own any property, land or valuable items at
their homes which are most times required as collateral. The vulnerable women we serve do not
entirely qualify for a loan anywhere in the bank because they do not have the collateral required.
While providing the micro loans, our approach is to ensure that each vulnerable woman gets an
opportunity to access finances regardless of where they are located.
Our Approach to providing the Small Loans
Recognizing that most of the vulnerable women in the communities do not have any collateral or
security to support their loans, Sustain Micro Enterprises decided to provide micro loans to the
women without any security required. To achieve this, we use the group loan approach to support
the vulnerable women to access micro loans.

Sustain women groups

How does SME Group Loan Approach Work?

Vulnerable women living within the same community and clearly know and trust each other,
come together to form a group and achieve the same goal. A total of 12 women become members
to a group, they come up with simple bye-laws to guide their group and undergo business
training from the organization. The group of 12 women agrees to work together and support each
other during the loan and saving process.
It is through the group that Sustain Micro Enterprises is able to provide the small loans. The
group therefore acts as security for the loan that the organization provides, thus loans given out
are based on social capital and the trust that the women generate between each other. In case of
any challenge in repayment, the women work together to solve the challenge.
The group of women meets weekly to repay the loans, attend adult literacy classes, share the
challenges and successes and of course seek advice to improve their businesses.
The group acts as a conduit through which Sustain Micro Enterprises communicates with the
women several social or economic issues. It is through the group that we provide counseling to
the women, communicate loan policies, provide adult literacy training, collect loans and support
the women undergoing challenging situations, members save and overall empowerment. The
group therefore is vital tool where positive relationships are nurtured, women supported and
empowered holistically.

Some of Sustain Women groups

Provide Adult education, Most of the vulnerable women in the community cannot read or write
due to the fact that they grew up in poverty stricken communities. As we work with them
especially in business, it is important that they learn simple mathematics and simple English for
easy communication and numerical application. Therefore, we engage the vulnerable women into
adult education using simple education materials which are easily understood and interpreted.
We are proud to see most women get to learn some numerical and little grammar. In addition,
some women are now able to sign on their documents due to this adult literacy program.

Women undergo the adult education sessions

Business, Financial and Entrepreneurial trainings for women, Sustain Micro Enterprises
supports and empowers the vulnerable women in small businesses with business, financial and
entrepreneurship skills. When our women join the Sustain Loan program, they undergo business
trainings before they qualify for any loan. The business training helps the women to attain key
skills required to operate their businesses and also manage the small loans efficiently.
The business, financial and entrepreneurship trainings are provided in the local languages which
are easily understood by the women. We realize that most women who are in small businesses
lack essential skills which are vital to keep their businesses flourishing. Sustain Micro
Enterprises provides the women with business and entrepreneurial skills in how to start and
sustain a business, savings, skills in calculating their profit-Loss margins, customer care,
marketing and business choices. To Sustain Micro Enterprises, business trainings for the women
are a continuous process. Women undergo simple refresher trainings every month to keep them
informed.

Some groups undergo Business, Financial and Entrepreneurial trainings

Reproductive health & Family planning

Most of the women we support lack reproductive health and family planning advice; they give
birth to a high number of children who they cannot support. Henceforth, most children end up
with poor health and unable to go to school. On average, majority of the women we work with
have more than seven children, this is a big number of children that they cannot support with
good education and health. And to worsen the matter, the women are not informed with
reproductive health and family planning.
Therefore, Sustain Micro Enterprises uses the opportunity of the weekly meetings to
communicate reproductive health and family planning information to the women. Through this
service, our focus is to provide simple and clear messages that can help the women take care of
themselves and produce the number of children they can take care of with the resources available
at their exposure.

Women undergo a reproductive health session

Sustain Micro Enterprises is dedicated to supporting the vulnerable women here in Uganda who
would otherwise receive no financial support anywhere without us. With the small loans
provided to the women, many are now in position to feed their children, make a profit, save some
money and live a meaningful life in regard to their dignity.
*For Sustainable Lives*
Sustain Micro Enterprises Uganda