MSWA is a brainchild of the Mutare City Council. It was formed in 1991 as a way of fighting the spread of HIV and Aids in the eastern border city and at the same time empowering the sex workers.
In an interview with The Zimbabwean recently, Masara said like most women who find themselves selling sex for a few dollars, it was never her intention or desire to become a sex worker. But she was forced into it by circumstances beyond her control – namely poverty and the need to care for her children.
“I was not happy about earning my living like that. But I needed the money to fend for myself and my two kids,” she explained with regret. She blesses the day that her friend, Maud Gore, 33 – also a former sex worker – invited her to join the group.
“I was engaged as a peer educator. My duty was to disseminate HIV and Aids information and to distribute condoms in public places. So I would to go around lobbying people in their work places, churches, beer halls and other public areas – encouraging them to shun sexual activities that propagate the prevalence of HIV,” she said. At MSWA the women receive training in various skills like floor polish making, poultry and tailoring, among others. Masara chose floor polish making, as she said it was in high demand. She now makes the floor polish from her home in Sakubva.
Savings
In the beginning she received financial and technical assistance from The British Embassy and the Self Help Development Foundation (SHDF). These organisations have helped support many income generating programmes.
“I am very grateful to the British Embassy for providing me with the money to start this floor polish project. The foundation (SHDF) taught me and other members the basics of savings,” said Masara.
Making the floor polish – which is available in red, black and white – is a simple process. She uses bee wax, Carnauba wax, lemon oil and water. She stirs the ingredients, adds lavender perfume to make it smell nice and leaves it for 12 hours to ensure that the scent has fully mixed with the lemon oil.
“I created a boiler using a huge pot made from a 200l drum cut in half and an oven-safe bowl. I then pour tap water into the huge pot and place the bowl on top and put the whole thing on the stove over low heat,” she explained. “By using this double boiler on top of the stove, the ingredients are melted together gently and do not burn. Every day early in the morning, Masara walks the dusty streets of Sakubva with buckets of home-made floor polish.
Business is good
“On a good day, I make $30. I sell a cup full of floor polish for a dollar and business has been very good. Sometimes I even don’t have enough polish to supply all my customers,” she said.
The money she earns has not only put food on the table for her family, but has even allowed her to pay school fees for her two children. “I am a happy mother now. I now live a smart life and I am proud that my daughters will also have a better life,” she said.
She said many women were desperate to find a better means of making a living, but jobs were hard to find in a country where the unemployment rate is on the rise. The acting director of health services for Mutare City Council, Simon Mashababe, said MSWA was established after the city realised the ever-increasing burden of STI and HIV treatment on its clinics. “We considered coming up with an association targeting vulnerable sexually active groups. The major aim was to establish financial independence for women as a way of curbing their vulnerability,” he explained.
Training ground
“This association has become so successful that Mutare has been the training ground for peer educators in Southern Africa. We have trained peer educators from countries like South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia and Botswana,” said Mashababe.
“Our objective is to put in place sustainable income generating projects that can reduce poverty at household level. We provide the socio-psychological support to the affiliated members of the association because we believe empowerment starts with the mind,” he added.
Over the years, the members of the association have built confidence in themselves and been a powerful tool in fighting HIV as well as eradicating poverty at household level.
Post published in: Analysis