Using village savings and loan associations (VSLAs) as a transformative approach to community mobilisation and the eradication of child labour

Targeting communities with limited access to financial opportunities and low social protection coverage, the ILOACCEL Africa project implemented a social finance intervention in Uganda to eliminate child labour in the country’s tea and supply chains. In line with the 2022Durban Call to Action, the intervention worked with financial and non-financial service providers to offer a bundled pack of services, which supported farmers with tailored financial solutions and provided with them access to productive and welfare services, thus helping address the underlying causes of child labour. Nascent RDO, a civil society organisation in Uganda, played a pivotal role in delivering targeted interventions and reaching vulnerable communities, children and youth.

Through the VSLAs, low-income households that were engaged in child labour were provided with opportunities to expand their income base by pooling their financial resources together, fostering better collective and bargaining power, and bulking their sales. Within a period of ten months, the intervention led to the establishment of ten youth groups, and 45 adult groups benefitting 971 females and 655 males making a total of 1626. The groups had saved a total of 425,203,700 UGX (112,946 USD) and were able to diversify their income sources, helping them overcome income shortages associated with agricultural cycles. Even after the intervention, the groups continued to exhibit strong leadership, maintain their standard records, and adhere to proper procedures for savings and borrowing.