THE THREE BOXES PROJECT

Final Report

June 30, 2012

Project Goals

St. Nicholas Church of Evanston, Illinois, and

St. Bartholomew Church of Columbus, Indiana, each

received matching grants of $10,000 from the Haiti

Partnership Unit, Catholic Relief Services Matching

Grants Program, to expand their current support of the

Three Boxes Project, an effective grassroots self-help

lending program. We implement this program through

a direct relationship with Kolektif Finansman Popilè

(KOFIP), the Haitian Non Governmental Organization

that sponsors savings groups called “mutuelles de

solidarité” throughout Haiti.

St. Nicholas and St. Bartholomew proposed to

allocate $35,000 of the project funds to mutuelles in

Limonade (where both have a twinning relationship with

St. Anne Church) and to nearby towns in the North. St.

Nicholas also proposed to allocate $5,000 to bring mutuelles to La Vallée de Jacmel, the

hometown of several long-time St. Nicholas parishioners.

This financial support was expected to result in:

x 250 people trained in operating mutuelles in the North, including 75 people from outside Limonade

x 20 new mutuelle groups convened in the North; x 183 “Blue Box” loans in the amount of 5,000 HTG ($128) made by mutuelles in the

North with outside funding from KOFIP, including 23 loans by mutuelles outside of Limonade;

x 50 people trained in operating mutuelles in La Vallée; x 5 new mutuelle groups convened in La Vallée; and x 18 “Blue Box” loans in the amount of 5,000 HTG ($128) made by mutuelles in La Vallée

with outside funding from KOFIP.

St. Nicholas Parishioner Elizabeth Polycarpe and KOFIP Director Luckner Romulus

St. Nicholas Parishioner Elizabeth Polycarpe and KOFIP Director Luckner Romulus

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The generous matching support from CRS resulted in total funding of $40,100, including

$10,000 from St. Bartholomew and $10,100 from St. Nicholas. Our expenditures to date equal

$33,181. We have met or exceeded all of our goals for the North, and by September we will also

have met or exceeded our goals for La Vallée. As shown in the attached reports, to date this

project has resulted in:

x 345 people trained in operating mutuelles in the North, including 120 people from outside Limonade;

x 23 new mutuelle groups convened in the North, with 580 total members; x 183 “Blue Box” loans in the amount of 5,000 HTG ($127) made by mutuelles in the

North with outside funding from KOFIP, including 46 loans by mutuelles outside of Limonade, with a cumulative interest charge of 460 HTG per five-month loan, and a repayment rate of 100% to date;

x 50 people trained in operating mutuelles in La Vallée; and x 5 new mutuelle groups convened in La Vallée, with 120 total members.

In addition to the progress already achieved, the remaining project funds of $6,969 will be

disbursed by September and will result in:

x 138 people trained in operating mutuelles in the Northern commune of Plaisance; x 12 new mutuelle groups convened in Plaisance, with a total of 228 members; x 30 people trained in operating mutuelles in La Vallée; and x 26 “Blue Box” loans in the amount of 5,000 HTG ($127) made by mutuelles in La Vallée

with outside funding from KOFIP, with a cumulative interest charge of 460 HTG per five-month loan.

Benefits of Mutuelles

Mutuelles help their members both

socially and economically. The dynamic

growth of mutuelles through this project

shows that members truly value these

groups. Formed by people who know and

trust each other, mutuelles build on and

strengthen these social ties. Mutuelle

meetings always begin with prayer and

sharing of local news. The regular

meetings and activities of the mutuelle

foster closer relationships, and the Red

Mutuelle members in Quartier Morin

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Box “insurance fund” creates a low-cost way to aid members with severe emergencies.

Mutuelles also help their members economically. All mutuelle members are engaged in

some kind of economic activity, whether buying and selling goods in the market, cultivating

produce, or raising animals. The new mutuelles in the North and South-East support these

activities directly through the Green and Blue Boxes.

In the North, mutuelles have all agreed that members will contribute 100 gourdes to the

Green Box twice monthly. For a typical new mutuelle in the North with 25 members, Green Box

contributions equal 2,500 gourdes per meeting. This sum is then loaned to various members at

2% interest, typically for two to five months. For new mutuelles, loans are small, frequently

ranging from 500 to 1,000 gourdes.

With Green Box loans, members

will modestly expand their existing

activities or simply meet their immediate

cash flow needs. Loans in the range of

500 to 1,000 gourdes are most frequently

used to buy and sell any type of good that

is available in the local market, including

food, cosmetics, toiletries, charcoal,

school books, drinks, rope, book bags,

shoes, and clothing. While Green Box

loans, and the economic activities they

support, are small, such loans give members a much-needed alternative to moneylenders. A

mutuelle with twenty-five members adds 5,000 gourdes per month to its Green Box, funds which

otherwise the members collectively might have to borrow elsewhere at much greater expense.

In La Vallée, members of the five newly-formed mutuelles are now contributing 50

gourdes twice-monthly to the Green Box. For example, with 35 members, Famn Vanyan is

adding 3,500 gourdes per month to its Green Box, and Tet Ansamn, with 23 members, is adding

2,300 gourdes per month to its Green Box. As in the North, these sums will be used for small

loans of several hundred gourdes and higher, at 2% interest. The loans will mostly be used to

help members sell more goods in the market, giving a modest increase in profit.

Mutuelle members in Limonade

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After the mutuelles have been operating for a year, the members will decide how much of

the yearly Green Box contributions should be returned to the members, plus interest. Typically

most of the contributions are cashed-out by the group at year end, although each group will

decide this for themselves.

Externally-funded Blue Box loans from KOFIP also help mutuelle members with their

economic activities. In March and May, KOFIP made a total of 183 Blue Box loans of 5,000

gourdes to the mutuelles in North. By September, KOFIP plans to make 26 Blue Box loans to

the mutuelles in La Vallée. The loans are for five months, and the cumulative interest charge for

each loan is 460 gourdes. The loans require no fees or security deposits, and the declining-

balance interest rate is considerably lower than other lenders typically charge. To date, all of the

outstanding Blue Box loans are being repaid 100% on time.

KOFIP does not require mutuelle members to specify exactly how they will use the Blue

Box loans. As with the smaller Green Box loans, many mutuelle members use the Blue Box

loans to buy goods in larger quantities to sell in the market. In addition, many people have used

the 5,000 gourde Blue Box loans to plant a garden. For example, Andre Napoleon is a member

of the mutuelle Soley in Grand Riviere du Nord. Last year he received a KOFIP loan, which he

used to plant bananas and manioc. He contrasted the KOFIP loan favorably with his previous

experience borrowing from another lender. He felt the previous loan was like “cutting his

throat” due to the high interest rate and fees.

Andre Napolean (standing) appreciated his KOFIP loan

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Training for New Mutuelles

KOFIP is a founder of the mutuelle movement in Haiti and has trained new mutuelles for

more than 15 years. KOFIP focuses on the grassroots, reaching out to existing peasant groups

and other local organizations to spread the word about mutuelles. In the North, Chancy Jacques,

KOFIP’s regional coordinator, is a dedicated and effective advocate for mutuelles. Like all of

KOFIP’s local leaders, Chancy belongs to a mutuelle himself. Assisting Chancy in Limonade

are several local mutuelle leaders who have been trained to provide the initial formation for

mutuelle members. These leaders in turn act as voluntary spokespersons for mutuelles, causing

the movement to continuously grow in Limonade.

The expansion of mutuelles in Grand Riviere du Nord, near Limonade, shows how

existing local groups can enthusiastically embrace mutuelles. In Grand Riviere du Nord, the

Jean Baptiste Chavannes cooperative grows cacao. The cooperative in turn has eleven local

groups. Due to outreach by Chancy Jacques, many of these local groups are now in the process

of becoming mutuelles. Through this project, five of these new mutuelles received training and

Blue Box loans. Members of the cooperative are extremely enthusiastic about their new

mutuelles. The mutuelles complement the cooperative by helping members to pursue other

business opportunities between cacao

crops. Cooperative members are also

discussing whether to contribute part of

their cacao profits directly to the Green

Box.

In Plaisance, another locality in the

North, mutuelles are now growing at an

impressive rate. Before this project

began, eleven mutuelles in Plaisance had

been meeting since 2008, after receiving

training from KNFP, another Haitian

NGO. However, these groups lacked

continuing help for training and follow-up.

Chancy Jacques contacted these groups on behalf of KOFIP, and began working in collaboration

with the local mutuelle leaders to strengthen the groups. This partnership revitalized the local

Leaders of Jean Baptiste Chavannes Cooperative in Grand Riviere du Nord are helping form mutuelles

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mutuelles, and twelve new mutuelles have been formed in Plaisance so far this year. Using

funds from this project, six members of each of the twenty-three new and existing mutuelles in

Plaisance will receive a full day of training. The training for these 138 mutuelle members will

take place over five days and is planned for the week of July 15, in the areas of Labadi, Dité,

Galbaud, Canade, and Latrouble.

To introduce mutuelles to La

Vallée, KOFIP began with local contacts

provided by St. Nicholas parishioners

from the area. From January 24-27, 2012,

Luckner Romulus of KOFIP visited La

Vallée with parishioners from St.

Nicholas and explained mutuelles to

members of a local women’s group, the

members of a local youth group,

representatives of various farmers groups,

and a group of local farmers from K’dwa.

A few people in attendance had already

heard of mutuelles, and by March 3, two mutuelles had already formed and were conducting

their first meetings. In the past month, three additional mutuelles have formed and begun

meeting in La Vallée.

KOFIP’s formal training takes place after a new mutuelle has formed and its first

meetings have taken place. The training for new mutuelles covers five areas: 1) Objectives of a

mutuelle, 2) Structure and organization of a mutuelle, 3) Functioning of a mutuelle, 4) Rules and

regulations adopted by a mutuelle, and 5) Management of a mutuelle.

Between December 19, 2011 and January 11, 2012, KOFIP trained twenty-three new

mutuelles in the North, including four mutuelles in Grand Riviere du Nord, three mutuelles in

Limbe, and fifteen mutuelles in Limonade. Each mutuelle received eight hours of training,

lasting from 8 am to 4 pm and including meals. Approximately fifteen members from each

mutuelle attended the trainings. Of the 560 total members of the twenty-three new mutuelles in

Limonade, Limbe, and Grand Riviere du Nord, 61% attended the all-day trainings. On March 31

St. Nicholas Parishioner Elizabeth Polycarpe explains mutuelles to women in her hometown of La Vallée

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and April 1, KOFIP held a two-day training in La Vallée, attended by fifty members of the new

Fanm Vanyan and Tet Ansamn mutuelles.

Further trainings are scheduled to take place this summer. As mentioned above, there

will be five days of training during the week of July 15 in Plaisance: 138 people will receive

training that week, between twenty-four and thirty people each day. In addition, thirty

members of the newest mutuelles in La Vallée (Mityèl Kay Dire, Mityèl Bouchro, and Mityèl

Morne à Bruler) will attend a two-day training in La Vallée on July 25-26. Finally, On July 28

in La Vallée, there will be a third day of training for the officers of the new mutuelles in La

Vallée.

Mutuelle members in Plaisance will receive training in July.

Conclusion

Through this project, forty new mutuelles of solidarity have been created and trained in

five different communes of Haiti, encompassing 828 members. This project has funded 209

Blue Box loans on reasonable terms, of which the outstanding loans are currently being repaid on

time in their entirety. We are grateful to CRS for their help in making these results possible.

Attachments:

Attachment 1: St. Bartholomew Budget December 2011-March 2012

Attachment 2: St. Bartholomew Budget March 2012-June 2012

Attachment 3: St. Nicholas Budget December 2011-March 2012

Attachment 4: St. Nicholas Budget March 2012-June 2012

Attachment 5: List of new mutuelles in Limonade, Limbe, and Grand Riviere du Nord

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Attachment 6: List of new and existing mutuelles in Plaisance

Attachment 7: March 2012 Loan Terms and Repayment Schedule

Attachment 8: March 2012 Loan Beneficiaries—St. Bartholomew

Attachment 9: March 2012 Loan Repayments to date—St. Bartholomew

Attachment 10: March 2012 Loan Beneficiaries—St. Nicholas

Attachment 11: March 2012 Loan Repayments to date—St. Nicholas

Attachment 12: May 2012 Loan Terms and Repayment Schedule

Attachment 13: May 2012 Loan Beneficiaries—St. Bartholomew

Attachment 14: List of new mutuelles in La Vallee

Attachment 15: List of training participants in La Vallee, March 31-April 1