So this morning, I was perusing my monthly newsletter from the African Lion & Environment Research Trust (ALERT) who are one of the sister companies of African Impact, the organization I went to Zimbabwe through in 2007. I like to keep up to date on my lions.
Anyway, so in the newsletter, they go over some of the projects they’re working on, and this one I just love:
Village Banking
To reduce hunger while elevating the most vulnerable families out of poverty through the conversion of an on‐going micro‐lending program to one based on goats as the currency.
The Africa Centre had launched a village banking program that eventually served 500 women who used the profits from their microenterprises to feed their families and send their children to school. By using livestock as the currency ACHM could more than match Zimbabwe’s inflation: not only do they maintain their value, they also produce offspring, thus outpacing inflation. Five banks, of 20 families each, have been formed following six weeks of training in the three pilot communities.
Each family has been loaned 10 goats (a minimum of 9 females) for three years. Interest is due annually (3 goats per annum) until the loan is repaid. (Interest payments provide the goats needed to start new banks). Goats were selected as the currency because they often kid more than once a year and can also produce twins. In theory, this reproductive rate should allow families to grow their herds, while consuming some animals, selling others, and repaying their loans.
That’s genius — Zimbabwean currency is worthless, they’re suffering from crazy superinflation, so there’s no point in giving cash loans. But goats! Who doesn’t love a goat-loan? I would like to deal in $Goat, please.
Wait a minute. If I got paid in goats, I’d be getting a small herd every two weeks. Um. Wait. No, nevermind. I’ll stick with $CDN.
Yes, the picture is a donkey, not a goat. I didn’t have one of a goat, except for my silly dog, and I don’t think that would have fit. But it’s a LITTLE donkey. Roughly goat-sized. Cute, too.
This post is possibly inspired by the fact that I love the word “goat”.
Hey, my coworker raises goats if you’d like to acquire some. However, guessing your building doesn’t normally allow herd animals, even if you have a dog with herding instincts. ;-)
There are some goats on my flickr page or facebook if you want to use those pics :)
And if you need more goats just make a direct deposit.