Chwele Women’s Group

Chwele, Kenya

The Chwele Women’s Group was established as a self-help group in 2003 to empower themselves with the skills and opportunity to financially provide for their families. The women are skilled in handicrafts, including quilting which was introduced to them by Jan Schmetzer, a Harambee Centre volunteer, on a 2011 service trip to Kenya.

If you have a quilt or banana-fiber purse from Harambee Centre, it was made by this group of women. Proceeds from these items go back to the group. They donate 25% of these proceeds back into the needs of their community, 25% is invested back into their small businesses, 25% goes into savings for their families, and 25% is spent on immediate family needs.

Due to the success of this group, some of the women will mentor participants in our new Vocational Skill Building Program for Teen Mothers Project in Chwele, Kenya (project development began in 2021).