Sustainabilty

The SAM Project provides the access to resources and expertise so that villages can build local enterprises, which in turn provide the cash needed to sustain a lunch program for primary-school students. The cash-generating activities are controlled by stakeholders within the community. The projects are easy to set up, they are cost effective, and the results (revenues generated, number of meals served, increase in enrollment and attendance) are easily measured. Once established, the projects do not require further financial inputs from outside sources.

The SAM Project works with a Zambian-registered Co-operative to distribute funds and resources to the individual enterprises. By setting up repayable loans instead of handing out cash and equipment, the projects are imbued with the discipline and focus that ownership brings. Participants are committed to the success of their enterprises and we leverage our funds in order to help more families raise themselves out of the rural poverty trap.