Siyazigabisa & SAIE Report

Mon, 13 August 2007

Siyazigabisa & SAIE: Providing Entrepreneurial Training to Siyazigabisa’s Income Generating Projects

This project to train the women involved in Siyazigabisa Home of Hope's income-generating group with basic business skills is complete, and has enabled the development of skills and business plans for sewing, shoe-making, beadwork and bakery projects. These projects aim to become business units that will enable this non-profit organisation serving abused children and women to become financially independent.

The project received an instalment of R46 000 from SASIX on 11 November 2006, and R14 000 was paid directly to Siyazigabisa. The full cost of the project (not including the SASIX administration, monitoring and evaluation fee) of R60 000, has therefore been covered.

Implementation of project activities to date

All the project objectives have been achieved:

• An initial six days of training were conducted with 22 participants from 12-17 February 2007. This training included a needs assessment to determine the levels of competencies of the participants. Business skills training was then conducted, using SAIE’s MicroPlan programme, and participants were encouraged to start developing their own business plans in preparation for the second four-day phase of the project.
• The second and last four-day phase of the project took place from 26-29 March 2007, with 14 of the initial 22 participants attending (four women were unable to attend due to other commitments, one young lady had left the project, another had relocated to Vereeniging, and the two men from the community did not attend).
• This second phase started with an assessment again, and a review of the first six days of training. The focus was then placed on the development and refinement of four business plans for the four project groups.
• Siyazigabisa was also provided with documentation to register as a co-operative, to enhance the procurement of financial resources for business purposes.

Participants expressed their appreciation for the training. As the business plans developed, participants commented on how “each element was like a building block on the previous element and how the document showed how all these elements come together in one fluid story detailing the business road map”.

Project expenditure to date

Funds have been utilized for training, follow-up support and project management as follows:

Project cost	Funding	Incurred	Over/(Under)
Training fees	30 000	30 000	0
Accommodation	6 500	6 117	383
Airfare	5 000	4 629	371
Car hire	4 500	0	4 500
Certificates	0	97	(97)
Total	46 000	40 843	5 157

Note: The funds remaining are mainly due to the fact that we had free car transportation in Johannesburg, with some savings on airfare and accommodation. Also, certificates had not been planned for but participants requested and were provided with these since we felt it would be an important way of marking and acknowledging their achievement.

Beneficiaries of the project

An initial six days of training were conducted with 22 participants from 12-17 February 2007. The second and last four-day phase of the project took place from 26-29 March 2007, with 14 of the initial 22 participants attending.

Challenges faced in implementation

The different levels of education, experience and age posed some challenges: the older women took much longer than the younger ones to grasp the theoretical concepts. The low levels of numeracy among the older women meant that much more time had to be spent on cashflow, income statement and break-even analysis. The challenges were addressed by grouping the younger, stronger participants with the older ones.

Monitoring and evaluation

The projected was completed on 29 March 2007. The project called for participants to get assistance to develop their business plans. The assistance was rendered and four business plans were completed by the four member groups. In addition, Siyazigabisa was provided with documentation and information to apply for registration as a co-operative to make use of the financial resources available through the Department of Trade and Industry’s section for co-operatives.

Conclusions

MicroPlan provides small-scale income-generating projects with business skills and the ability for members to develop business plans. This allows for members to understand the different elements of business and to manage their businesses properly.

It is anticipated that the skills taught through the MicroPlan course and the business plans drawn up for the sewing, shoe-making, beadwork and bakery projects will now be effectively implemented, so that those projects can get off the ground and start generating a steady stream of income for Siyazigabisa Home of Hope.

Interim Progress Report

Thu, 22 March 2007

1. Background

SASIX committed funding in the amount of R60,000 for the provision of ten days of entrepreneurial training to Siyazigabisa’s income generating projects, the training to include a needs assessment, entrepreneurial skills training and assistance with the development of a business plan. SAIE received the amount of R46,000 on 11 November 2006. SAIE is grateful for this funding and expresses its appreciation to the funder for its generosity and interest in SAIE’s work. (We understand that the balance of R14,000 has been paid directly to Siyazigabisa for catering and travel stipends – see below.)

2. Siyazigabisa

Siyazigabisa Home of Hope is a not-for-profit organisation, registration number 013-462 NPO based at 269-270 Marocco Street, Isivana Section, Tembisa. The Home was established by Ms Gab’sile Khoza to look after orphaned and abandoned children from in and around Tembisa. The Home has since expanded through the hard work of Ms Khoza to include large premises which seek to provide working space for income generating projects under the auspices of Siyazigabisa. These projects include a clothing and sewing project for elderly women in the area and a beadwork project for young women, also from in and around Tembisa.

The objective of the workshop arranged with the South African Institute of Entrepreneurship (SAIE) was to equip women working in these projects with basic business skills, as well as to empower them to develop their own business plans with a view to developing their own road-map for their collective and individual businesses.

A total of 22 participants attended the initial six days of the Microplan Entrepreneurs Workshop at the Siyazigabisa Home of Hope (the remaining four days to be conducted from 26 to 29 March 2007). With the exception of 2 young men from the neighbourhood who were recruited to join the workshop by Ms Khoza, all the participants were women, the youngest a 17 year old youth leader to a number of elderly women who run their own clothing and sewing project at the Home.

3. Objectives Achieved

The following objectives have been achieved:

• Six (out of 10) days of training were conducted with 22 participants from 12 to 17 February 2007; the training took place at Siyazigabisa Home of Hope, located at 269/270 Isivana Section, Tembisa, Johannesburg, Gauteng.
• A needs assessment was conducted on the first day. This assessment revealed that all participants had had secondary education; however, 11 of the women had limited mathematical skills and needed significant assistance with basic business concepts. Emphasis therefore had to be placed on the business simulation to “learn through experience”, with the theoretical workcards being used to reinforce the experiential learning.
• The simulation proved highly effective in getting participants to understand the key concepts involved in starting and developing a business, including planning, allocation of income and expenses, finding customers, negotiating with customers and suppliers, cashflow management, etc.
• Participants were urged to develop their own business plans with the information and knowledge gained, in preparation for the remaining four days – part of the four days will then be used to refine the draft business plans.
• Participants were also urged to formalize themselves into one or more cooperatives for purposes of developing their business plans for possible financing by the Department of Cooperatives (part of the DTI).

4. Objectives Outstanding

Six of the planned ten training days have been undertaken at this stage of the project. The remaining four days of training will be conducted from 26 to 29 March 2007. At that time, draft business plans will be refined. Participants will also be provided with all the required documentation relating to cooperatives (draft constitution, registration, application for grant funding) to enable them to lodge their business plans with the Department of Cooperatives.

5. Challenges

The different levels of education, experience and age posed some challenges:

• The older women took much longer than the younger ones to grasp the theoretical concepts.
• The low levels of numeracy among the older women meant that much more time had to be spent on cashflow, income statement and break-even analysis.
• The challenges were in part addressed by grouping the younger, stronger participants with the older ones.

6. Trainee Feedback

The trainee feedback on the workshop is very positive. Participants indicate that interaction was encouraged, that they benefited from the workshop, and that the workshop was well planned. There is also the request for more of these workshops to take place. There is also the suggestion to have the workshop conducted in a local language ("…but it was not problematic this time").

Ms Gabisile Khoza indicated via telephone after the workshop that she was very pleased with the way in which the workshop had been conducted. They had benefited from the training and were looking forward to having the remaining four days completed. A letter from Mrs Khoza is included below.

7. Funding

The funds have been utilized as follows:

Training fee (6 days @ R3 000/day)	18 000
Accommodation	2 765
Airfare	1 802
Car hire	Nil
Total funds utilized	22 567
Funds remaining	23 433
Training	12 000
Accommodation	3 735
Airfare	3 198
Car hire	4 500

Notes: 1 The SAIE trainer did not incur any car hire as he was transported by his sister; 2 Accommodation and airfare were sourced at much reduced rates. 3 R23 433.00 to be utilised for the 4 days of training that still need to be done.

8. Letter from Siyazigabisa

Letter from Siyazigabisa

Siyazigabisa Home of Hope

P O Box 1793

TEMBISA

1628

14 MARCH 2007

Dear SASIX

Siyazigabisa Home of Hope would like to thank you for your generous support in funding us for entrepreneurial training on income generating projects. We hereby confirm that we have received the amount of R14,000 deposited into our account on 15 December 2006.

The funds have been utilized for traveling stipends to the 22 participants and also for meals and refreshments for the training that was held from Monday 12th February until Saturday the 17th of February. The training took 6 days only and we will be having another 4 days continuation as from the Monday 26th March until Thursday the 29th of March.

We would like to bring to your attention that with the funding you gave has made a huge different to 22 people who have been “down and out” in life due to social challenges, e.g., poverty, domestic violence, unemployment, HIV/AIDS etc.

With your support the participants have been empowered and enlightened and they are eager to make it in the business world, and also you have helped them to create employment for themselves which will enable them to put a plate of food on the table for their families. Thank you for rebuilding the lives of the women who are pillars of their families.

Thank you so so much for giving us a second chance in life to stand up and do it for ourselves. Not only women have benefited out of the training but 3 young guys who finished matric last year were part of the training as they are looking forward to making it in the fashion world.

Lastly thank you and looking forward to your continuous support.

Yours in community development

Gab’sile M. Khoza

Director