Thandi Mkhabela’s money used to slip through her fingers.
Now the 34-year-old mother of four earns interest on monthly savings, has paid off debts and is planning to extend her house in a township just outside Johannesburg, without ever dealing with a bank.
Mkhabela’s improved financial footing came after she formed a savings club in June last year with 16 other women. Each of them contribute 100 to 500 rand (US$6.68 to US$33.42) a month, and the club, known as a stokvel, offers three-month loans to members at rate of 10 percent per month. At the end of the year they split