Kampala

So, this week, we had 6 hours of classes a day all about microfinance. We had a different lecturer each time, so the consistency wasn’t all that great—we had a lot of repeat information, and it felt like each class was an intro class with a slightly different bent on the subject. But at least for three of the days, we got to go on excursions in the afternoon. On two of the days, we went to Finca and Centenary banks, institutions that both provided microloans. We met with managers of each of the banks, discussed their origins, their interest rates (which were like 15%-25% because the central bank charges so much and to curb their current inflation), their borrowers, and whatnot. We met with clients at each of the banks and asked about their businesses and loans. The first lady we talked to was super reserved (as per the culture’s prescription for women. Hrmph. I’ve become less culturally relative since coming here) and didn’t tell us much, but she did mention that she is now able to pay school fees for her kids, which was good. The second group we met with consisted of about ten people from a group of a hundred or so who all sold dried fish. Their group is a couple of years old, and consists of men and women who work in the adjacent market. We asked them a few questions about their lending and businesses, and then we went into the market to see where they worked.

The market was huge! It’s the biggest market in Kampala, and I’m assuming Uganda. People get there and open up shop at around 4 in the morning and close at 6 at night. We toured the sections with ginger, garlic, onions, and dried fish. The officers of the group showed us how they did business then we got to walk around for a bit. In addition to the tons of food, they had a section filled with used clothes. The used clothes market is huge here. It’s the reason I see “keep Austin weird” shirts on the way to school worn by people who have no idea what that means. Most of the clothes donated to goodwill, salvation army, and the like end up in developing countries like this one and are sold really cheaply, which kills the textile industry here. It’s interesting. Apparently there’s a documentary out there somewhere on this.

On our last day in Kampala, we visited the SIT office and met the SIT Uganda-Kampala kids who were all pretty cool. They also have programs in Gulu and…somewhere else in Uganda too. The next morning, we packed up and made the 6 hour trek to Kasese, where I’m finally writing this. Oh, and we found some American missionaries on the way. They’re getting really easy to spot. (hrmph)