Our History

The Beginning: In the spring of 2007, Robyn Nietert and Betsy Gordon, two residents of the Carderock Springs neighborhood in Bethesda, MD, discussed ideas for organizing an initiative that would allow local women to reach out to their counterparts in developing nations. Graduates of George Washington University law school and business school respectively, they discovered a common interest in microfinance.

The Founding: It became clear that one advantage of a microfinance initiative is that unlike conventional aid organizations, microfinance preserves the capital base of an organization by providing loans rather than subsidies. Nietert and Gordon thus found that a microfinance initiative would allow them to assist impoverished communities in a sustainable way. Nietert and Gordon called on other colleagues with professional experience to form a non-profit corporation, the Women's Microfinance Initiative (WMI). A colleague practicing at Baker & McKenzie in New York persuaded the firm to provide pro bono legal counsel.

The Uganda Network: Through a global service project of Bradley Hills Presbyterian Church, Ms. Nietert had learned about the women of the Bulambuli Widows Association in Buyobo, Uganda. Another church member, June Kyakobye, had spent childhood vacations in Buyobo with her mother. Ms. Kyakobye immediately endorsed the idea of providing business loans to the women of Buyobo and she joined the WMI Board.

WMI's Board members pooled their resources to fund the Women's Microfinance Initiative. Through Ms. Kyakobye, they entered a dialogue with the Bulambuli Widow's Association and reached an agreement making the widow's association a local lending partner. In order to provide follow-up services and training to borrowers, WMI forged an alliance with a local Ugandan charity, Foundation for the Development of Needy Communities (FDNC), which provides extensive outreach services to the villages in the Buyobo area. With the help of its newly created Advisory Board, the WMI directors drafted loan documents and training materials for its credit program.

The Journey: At the end of December 2007, Ms. Nietert, her husband Malcolm Stevenson, also an attorney, and their two daughters, Montana, 19, a sophomore at UVA, and Victoria, 16, a junior at Walt Whitman High School, departed Dulles Airport for Africa. Traveling through Egypt and Kenya, they reached Uganda on December 31, 2007, and journeyed to Buyobo. There, they met up with Ms. Kayakobye and were ready to launch WMI's microlending program.

The Welcome: The entire village of Buyobo turned out to greet them. The women of the Bulambuli Widows Association, dressed in hand-made gowns, led a three hour program of singing, dancing and speeches. Local politicians were on hand to offer their words of thanks and the youth of the village drummed and step-danced. The welcome ceremony was held in a small out-door arena with a banana-leaf roof. Packed to capacity, dozens of wide-eyed children stood on tip-toe to catch a glimpse of the pageantry. When it was WMI's turn to speak, Ms. Nietert explained that WMI is not a big bank or large corporation, but just a group of business women on one side of the globe helping their counterparts on the other. She handed out pictures of the WMI Board, pointing to each member and naming her. The Buyobo women repeated each name carefully and clapped long and hard for the women across the ocean who were reaching out to them.

The Program Launch: After New Year's Day celebrations, the work began. Ms. Kyakobye teamed with Ms Nietert's daughter, Montana, enlisted as an intern for the project, to interview prospective borrowers and write simple business plans. Meanwhile, Ms. Nietert and Olive Wolimbwa, the Chair of the Widow's Association, formed a second team. Many of the applicants understood English, but Ms. Wolimbwa and Ms. Kyakobye provided Ligisu translation as needed.

For two days the teams vetted business ideas to raise chickens, market bugoyas and open small shops. Chatting quietly on a bench, women waited patiently for hours for their turn to meet. Loan applications were completed and then 2 days of training began. Ms. Nietert explained simple marketing, operations, and management concepts. Materials were handed out and the lesson on ìincome minus expenses equals profitsî drew cheers. Although many of the women had operated micro-businesses before, no one had ever explained the benefits of record keeping. WMI supplied note books and calculators and the women vowed to keep track of their business finances.

Ms. Stevenson was in charge of keeping tabs on WMI's documents and on the last day she handed out the Loan Agreements. Twenty initial borrowers were selected and they signed their names carefully to the documents, calling to their best friends to come over and witness their signatures. The loan amounts of $50 - $150 were distributed and 20 additional borrowers were pre-qualified for the next round of loans, which were disbursed in March 2008. The borrowers celebrated with an impromptu conga line that snaked its way through fledgling businesses.

The Return to America: The following morning the WMI team collected their belongings and headed out to Kampala, loaded with good-bye gifts of local coffee beans and home-made dresses. Surrounded by widows chanting a thank-you song, the WMI mini-van pulled out onto the dusty road, as the widows held up the cell phone WMI had purchased for them. Now, back in Bethesda, MD, WMI telephones the Widow's Association every week and Olive reports that the borrowers are doing great and have begun a joint savings program.

The Borrowers' Businesses: Borrowers of the first loan issues have business ventures in raising chickens, tailoring, buying and selling vegetables and bugoyas, selling cold drinks and biscuits, grinding maize, operating small shops, and growing coffee. Upon receiving their loans, women indicated that they would use their business profits to pay school fees, improve family meals and for medical care.

The March Loan Group: With administrative help from FDNC, a local Ugandan non-profit partner of WMI, The women of the Bulambuli Widow's Association issued a second round of 20 loans at the end of March. Like the January Loan Group, the women in this second group of borrowers have all made their loan payments on time.

The July Expansion: In July 2008, WMI Advisory board member Robert Israelite and WMI summer intern Hart Wood, a junior at the University of Mary Washington, traveled to Buyobo to hold a graduation ceremony for the first group of borrowers, who made their final loan payment in July. They also issued follow-up loans for larger amounts to the alumni, and made loans to 40 new borrowers.

The Goal for 2008: WMI's goal is to issue 120 new loans during 2008 and up to 40 follow-up loans to returning borrowers who successfully complete the six-month repayment term on their initial loans.

October Finale – In October 2008 the final 40 loans of the year were issued with 40 more women added to the waiting list for 2009. Ron Cordes of San Francisco, whose family foundation provided a grant to cover a 5-year salary for WMI’s Local Director, Olive Wolimbwa, traveled to Buyobo and met with the borrowers. It was a thrilling experience for the women of Buyobo.

2009 and Beyond – WMI received a grant for building construction that will provide much needed operating space in the village of Bulambuli. Continued support will allow the program to expand and ramp up lending to more impoverished women throughout eastern Uganda.