Florah Morapedi
Date: April 5, 2016
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I am a 56 year old woman from Chobe. One of the things that I was happy about was being able to attend lessons on running your own business. I was encouraged not to give up despite what I had been through in life.
I attended the lessons in 2014 after being invited by a friend who knew about my history of abuse. Unfortunately I managed to attend one phase as my child was very sick and had to care for her. When I started I had been given goats by the council and all of them died. I was then given chickens to help restart my business. Unfortunately I did not have a permanent structure to keep the chicken and they were eaten by snakes and other wild animals.
I am still struggling to source finances so that I can start the business again. The workshops given by GL have helped me to identify the risks that come with the business that I want to do. I also know how I can mitigate the risks. I also know about saving money from the sales that I make. Through the help of the council I have been able to buy more chickens using the money given to me by my children.
The violence I had experienced from my husband almost made me give up on life my children kept me going. We have now parted ways and I am at peace. The children are all grown up and learnt to live with the fact that their father had deserted them. The children are also at peace and have learnt to accept the situation. When they meet their father they are civil to him and greet him.
I realised that being financially independent really frees one. The people I stay with have also accepted my situation and I am no longer ashamed because I am a divorcee. I sell clothes to make ends meet. I have also joined non formal education and when given the opportunity I teach student on abuse and how you can free yourself from it.
I have learnt that for one to run a successful business you need to have lots of patience and love the business you want to embark on. I want my chicken business to grow until I am able to supply schools and other businesses such as hotels around Chobe.
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