Susan Mbewe: risking everything

The landing is hard for Susan Mbewe from Zambia. "We had a good life," says the mother of four. "Then my husband fell ill. We lost almost all our possessions and had to move into a small house with no electricity, water or windows." Susan has moments when she almost loses hope.

And yet: we meet her in her living room, where daylight shines through the windows and a knitting machine is constantly whirring. Susan has made it. She now supplies companies, schools and the local prison with sweaters. The family has not yet reached their former standard of living, but Susan says: "We have enough to eat, my husband is doing much better and we have been able to move back into a better house."

"My eldest son encouraged me to learn to knit myself."

Encouraging environment

To succeed, Susan needed people to encourage her. So the housewife risked everything she still had: "My sister persuaded me to buy a knitting machine with the last of our savings," she says. "I didn't know how to use the machine and hired a woman from the neighborhood for the first few orders. My eldest son encouraged me to learn how to knit myself."

Running a successful business yourself

Thanks to training from the ena partner organization, Susan learns the factors of successful business management. She now knows how to calculate her costs and how the market works. She has registered her business and relies on several sources of income as a safeguard if one pillar temporarily brings in less income. Now Susan even has time for new perspectives: "I want to start a school and train mothers in knitting." So she passes on her courage.

Pass on

This is exactly how ena should be: passing on knowledge, courage and perspectives. This is also reflected in the logo. It gets bigger with each letter, followed by a colon for new perspectives. Act with courage. Shaping the future.

More stories of hope can be found in the new enaktuell, ena's magazine.