Sharon lumbasi is the founding member of ‘Biashara Dada Initiative’ a community based organization that was formed to empower women in business economically and also to help them access information concerning business and mentorship.
At first since she was passionate about business and empowering women through social media so she thought of starting something but dint have the know how to go about it.
She then began her research on the Internet in order to see what other people were doing and how they were going about it.
She opened a Facebook page and called it ‘Mumpreneurs’, invited people to like and share the ideas with others.
“I was just testing the waters with the project and what I discovered from what people shared is that women really needed information about business, how they can grow it and basically where they could do marketing for their products at affordable rates. ” she begins.
Together with 8 other like-minded and empowered women she had interacted with organized for a meeting, which was to help them interact and share their business contacts.
Since she is also a social media marketer she decided to register the business and start working from there but unfortunately another group had already registered under the same name.
This then led to the formation of ‘Mama Biashara Network’ group just with the same agenda. Not long through the network on social media she came across another group of women who had the same vision like hers of empowering women in business.
“Through networking and sharing of my ideas I met other women who shared the same vision as I and were so passionate about doing business and there we formed ‘Biashara Dada Initiative’ that is up and running to day.” Said the 33 year old.
The groups’ vision expanded as they put their minds together as they just dint want to deal with women alone but also gear girls in schools in the entrepreneurship direction through the program ‘Hamasisha Dada’ that will commence in January.
The agenda here as she tells me is to go round in girls schools to mentor them into the direction of entrepreneurship after they are through with their education so that the society can have as many women as possible empowered to do business to reduce the hitch of unemployment.
“Members of the Biashara Dada will be able to pair the girls in groups each with successful women in various sectors who will provide emotional support and ethical guidance along with career advice and networking opportunities. The sessions will enable the scholars to begin to personalize success and imagine themselves with the capability to accomplish their dreams just like their mentors. “Explained Sharon.
Two is to provide solutions in terms of information to women who want to start or are already in business to help them expand their businesses and beside that also get access to finances.
“Since the Biashara Dada Initiative begun early this year we have been able to breakthrough in terms of access to information for business, the group has also grown in terms of membership and also access to finance where members are able to get loans from the initiative through table banking” she said.
The table-banking product, which they call ‘Imarisha Akiba’, which is the first phase of Biashara Dada Initiative is a product that the group is boasting of since the members are able to table their monthly contributions that initially was ranging from 300-5000 shillings depending on ones financial growth and strength.
Sharon says that each member used to chuck out the amount each of them could afford but then it looked unfair so for equity purposes and since loans were involved too, it was only fair for the group to standardize the amount to 1000 shillings each month from each member.
“Access to finances is a challenge that women who want to begin businesses or are in the process of growing their businesses hardly get through easily. Online businesses are termed risky and it’s not easy for one who is interested in that kind of business to get a loan from the government or a bank.” Says Sharon.
This therefore pushed ‘Biashara Dada Initiative’ into considering such issues that are uncounted with women in business by helping themselves through loaning one another from their own savings.
On the digital platform that has been kept active and vibrant and has almost 3000 members, any one is sure of getting advice and ideas on any questions they post about business.
The ‘Biashara Dada Initiative’ is looking forward to registering a Sacco to add more products to its organization so that the members and other people who would like to join can have a variety of products to choose from and work with.
Further ‘Biashara Dada Initiative’ also offers consultancy in business that gives direction to women who would like to start a business or are looking forward to expanding it.
“From my experience of having an idea but not knowing where to start from something that pushed me to go online and do a lot of research, I realized how difficult it can be and most people would not want to go through the same process. Therefore we offer business consultancy in our initiative where interested women can come to us and get guidance from the successful businesses some members already have which we use as case study.” Said Sharon.
Biashara Dada members also have had organized events like in the recent past the women organized an agri business event where they learned fish and straw berry farming.
There was also a HR event where a HR professional came to talk to them and they benefited from the strategies they would use to expand for those in small businesses, and also factors to consider when hiring talent for business.
Each member had the opportunity to write down their difficulties they are finding in their businesses, which were tabled and discussed offering concrete solutions.
Sharon adds that beginning from next year the women will be attending their organized classes of book keeping for the women to learn about financial management.
“A common mistake that people in business make is mixing business money with personal savings which is very wrong and that way it becomes difficult to account for every cent you spent. This class will therefore enable us learn on accountability and discipline for our business savings.” She said.
“Biashara Dada is a going to be big, apart from ‘Hamasisha Dada’ we will also begin a project of collecting and distributing sanitary towels for the under privileged girls in schools. We will also be forming sub groups to reach out to other women in the other parts of the country and definitely the next County is Western.” She said.
She is therefore calling upon other women with the same interest and vision as ‘Biashara Dadas’ especially in Western to feel free to join them so that they can help fellow women in realizing their dreams in establishing successful businesses however small they are.
“Any business can do and anyone interested is free to join us, we have women who specialize in beauty products, those in farming, women who sell vegetables, online marketers and those those who sell clothes. It is a mixture of all types of businesses, small, medium and big.” Said Lumbasi.
Though it has not been easy to come this far for the ‘Biashara Dada Initiative’ Lumbasi says that the cooperation of the members who have basically stuck to customer satisfaction is what has helped the group to grow.
“There is competition everywhere with so many groups targeting women and girls like us but with our mission to provide women in business with information, education and resources that will expose them to prosperity which we are fulfilling to our customers satisfaction we have no worry about other brands.” She quickly points out.
Away from the ‘Biashara Dada Initiative’ Sharon does online marketing for small businesses and working on content for her ‘Mama Biashara’ website which she put on hold to push for the ‘Biashara Dada Initiative’ agenda. She will be documenting successful business stories from women as part of her content.
Her advice is “plan, research well, there are so many ideas out there but choose wisely on what will take you to the next level of fulfilling your vision in business. Besides have discipline and accountability to every cent you spent in business.”
Article by Shillah Mwadosho.