Entrepreneurship is basically about taking a chance and going for it, but what if the opportunity or money isn’t there? A few days ago I had the privilege of chatting with a friend and fellow creative, Merle Fisher, to hear about his trip to Ghana, West Africa, and the program, S.A.L.T.

S.A.L.T stands for:

• Shared Accountability
• Lending
• Teaching

This program is at present run by C.A.M. Ministries but is also a business model that has been spreading globally.

It begins with accountability, where a group of about 12 women will go together and apply for a loan, which is then shared among the entrepreneurs for what is needed to start their individual businesses. It isn’t exactly a group loan, as each woman is responsible for her loan but if necessary will receive support from the other women to pay on time and save a little bit beside. Part of the program is to teach the ladies (or men who participate) to lay a little aside each month so that when emergencies come along they have a plan B.

Meet one of the ladies who has started this stand as the result of a micro loan.

Each of the groups has a group leader that is responsible for assembling the group who are then screened separately to make sure they’re good candidates for the loan. This group leader is the one basically vouching for each person in the group and also works with the group in the future.

What is astonishing about this program is the return rate of nearly 100%. Most of this is due to the screening and accountability groups who have each other’s backs for when it really counts.

The photo of this little girl is meaningful because her mother entered the program when she was pregnant with her, and several years later the lady is owner of a successful small, business and the little girl is healthy and growing.

“This lady was one of my favorites. She is a seamstress and works by taking orders, having the ladies bring the fabric of their choice to her while she supplies all the necessary notions and accessories, creative design and labor.”  -Merle

Guy with his boat, i.e. fishing business.

The team in Ghana working to give these businesses and entrepreneurs a chance.

“From a creative perspective this wall was a perfect blend of color and texture. It’s the kind of thing photographers dream about and hardly ever see. It was fun to take pictures here.” -Merle

“This picture was one of my favorites because it was so spontaneous. We were just riding around one day and stopped somewhere, and these two little girls came up to me hesitantly, and then shyly asked me to take their picture.” -M

“We didn’t have much chance to tour the countryside, and except for a fun ride home from the airport, music blaring and windows down at night and a quick trip to Elmina Castle we mostly visited clients. We did get out to a few places including the coast. That was amazing.” -M

“For these coastal photos I didn’t have access to my camera so my iPhone stood in for some quick shots.” -M

To wrap this up, when asked about a finishing highlight of the trip Merle replied, “honestly, it was the espresso at ‘The Giraffe’ in the London airport. After 8 straight days with no coffee it was amazing.” 

Creatives and their coffee, it’s hard to separate the two. Keep it real, y’all, grab some coffee and head on over to check out some of the rest of Merle’s work at merlefisher.com, or follow him on Instagram or Twitter. As a designer who has worked with web design, photography, and more recently brand and logo design, he knows what it takes to take a step outside of the norm and take a chance – as do all of the amazing folks from around the world.

 

All photo’s posted by permission of Merle Fisher.