Five Talents Program Launched in Burundi to Impact 10,000 People

Five Talents is now working in the small Central African country of Burundi, in partnership with the Mothers' Union UK and Mothers' Union Burundi. And, within three years, 10,000 people will be beneficiaries of this project!

Since 2000, the Mothers' Union Literacy and Development Program has been successfully training Burundians in literacy and numeracy. Five Talents is now partnering with the Mothers' Union in order to provide business skills training as well as savings and microcredit group formation to the literacy program participants.

At the end of February, 16 Mothers' Union trainers from six different dioceses in Burundi gathered in the capital city of Bujumbura to receive this savings group and business skills training from Five Talents. These trainers will now share their knowledge through the Mothers' Union network in Burundi.

During the project's first year, the trainers will train 110 facilitators, who will help start savings groups throughout Burundi. Over a three-year period, 340 savings groups will be started and 10,000 people will be beneficiaries of this project, which will focus on the most vulnerable communities and at least 70 percent of participants will be women.