What becomes of savings groups once the project that created them ends? In Camp-Perrin and Jérémie, savings groups support 2,438 people by providing savings and credit services. Their sustainability depends on the presence of local actors after the project ends. To ensure continuity, the Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund (ASB) is gradually transferring management skills to the communities. In Jérémie, eight field agents were thus certified as Private Service Providers (PSP) to support the groups autonomously.

This initiative, implemented with the financial support of Aktion Deutschland Hilft (ADH), aims to improve food security in Camp-Perrin and Jérémie through food vouchers, the creation of family and community gardens, and financial inclusion, in response to food insecurity and declining agricultural incomes worsened by violence and the displacement of families.

Training for sustainable savings services

The PSP model aims to ensure the sustainability of the Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLA) beyond the initial project. To this end, ASB trained its agents over nine months, providing theoretical and practical training to certify them as private service providers. The training covered areas such as setting up a sustainable service, pricing, deploying and recruiting agents, and structuring a provider network. At the end of this process, eight agents were certified, four in Camp-Perrin and four in Jérémie, in the presence of the VSLA officer responsible for their supervision.

Local actors recognised

During the ceremony, each recipient received their certificate along with a PSP implementation manual. For Johnson Téus, a certified agent in Camp-Perrin, the significance goes beyond the diploma: “People simply need leaders close to them, to guide them and help them save better. This training gives us the skills to create new groups and keep serving our communities.” In Jérémie, Lavia Paul stressed the knowledge passed on: “When people hear about NGOs, they first think of money. But it is above all knowledge that we share with the population.” Invited to take part, the authorities of both communes welcomed the initiative: Yvrose Pierre, mayor of Jérémie, asked ASB “to continue this work and never give up,” while Fenicile Marcius, mayor of Camp-Perrin, called for more young people to be trained.

A network set to grow

With 75% women among the 2,438 members, the continuity of these groups is a major issue for economic empowerment. Thanks to the PSPs now established in the communities, their support will not stop with the project: it can continue locally, extend to new members, and durably strengthen access to savings and credit.