As I see the poverty and the rural people in Zambia living mouth to mouth I think: “Is there any way I can make a small difference?” At the beginning of the year I decided to start savings accounts for my staff. I didn’t know if they would go for it but it was worth a try. After explaining first to Desmond that if he saved a part of his salary each month I would match is savings at the end of the year. There are several conditions. 1) there is a maximum amount he can put into his account each month, 2) he must physically give me the money each month, 3) he can take out money if he needs to but he will not make interest on his savings, 5) the maximum amount that can be out in each month is 150,000 kwacha (equivalent to $30 US dollars, 4) at the end of the year, I will match 100% the amount that he saved.
Both Desmond and my scout George have started savings accounts with me. Actually George’s wife is saving with me. Desmond’s goal is to save enough to enter school to earn his teaching certificate. George’s wife Maureen, already a grade school teacher in Serenje, has begun her Diploma in Primary Education (similar to one with a teaching certificate in the United States going on to get her Masters degree in education). By the end of the ear Maureen should have enough money saved to pay for her two years of education. Desmond will have saved enough for one of two years of a teaching certificate.
So David, is this a simple savings account or a “conditional cash transfer”?
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