Enhancing livelihood of women: the case of Mukando savings clubs in Zimbabwe and their important contribution to sustainability

By Gladys Mutangadura (gladysbindura@yahoo.com), Master of Urban Studies, SFU; PhD Agriculture & Applied Economics, Virginia Tech

Women are at the heart of Zimbabwe’s economy, particularly at the household and community levels. Across both urban and rural settings, women play a central role in generating income, managing household resources, caring for children and the elderly, and ensuring food security. The majority of women earn a living within the informal economy through activities such as small-scale farming, food and cloth vending, tailoring, cross-border trading, food processing, housekeeping, braiding and home-based enterprises such as poultry and rabbit rearing.

Despite their productivity and innovation, women often face barriers to accessing formal financial services. Banks typically require collateral, stable incomes, and formal documentation -requirements that many women are unable to meet (World Bank, 2018; Chineka & Mundau, 2021). As a result, women have increasingly turned to alternative financial systems that are accessible, flexible, and rooted in community relationships. One of the most important of these systems is the informal savings club, locally known as mukando.

This article examines how mukando clubs are enhancing the livelihoods of women in Zimbabwe and contributing to broader sustainability outcomes. The research for this case study was conducted by Gladys Mutangadura and is partly informed by her master’s thesis in Urban Studies, titled "Female-Headed Households, Urban Agriculture and Climate Change: A Case Study of Dangamvura High-Density Suburb in Mutare, Zimbabwe.”

The study investigated how female-headed households in Dangamvura - a high-density suburb of Mutare - are adapting to and coping with the impacts of drought on urban agriculture and food security. Mukando clubs emerged as a critical community-based strategy, providing female-headed households with access to cash that strengthened their resilience and adaptive capacity in the face of climate change.

Figure 1: Women at a mukando club meeting. Photo by Tawanda Karombo, Al Jazeera.

Figure 2: Groceries from a grocery mukando being shared at the end of the year. Photo by Pamela Zemura, Facebook.

What is mukando club?

Mukando club is a community-based savings arrangement where members contribute money regularly and take turns receiving the pooled funds or borrow from the collective savings. The name mukando, is a Shona word which literally means to pool, or to throw in.

Mukando is a long-standing tradition in Zimbabwe that existed in communities before independence in 1980 (Nyabeze et al., 2025). Mukando clubs are widespread across Zimbabwe in both urban and rural areas. During both the colonial era and the post-independence period, women increasingly turned to mukando as a means of supplementing household income (Tarugarira, 2025). In the years following Zimbabwe’s economic crises of the 2000s, mukando became even more significant as women sought to safeguard their savings and sustain livelihoods amid prolonged economic uncertainty (Mkodzongi & Lawrence, 2019; Karombo 2023). Today mukando remains a crucial, thriving financial lifeline for many in Zimbabwe, particularly among women, informal traders, and, increasingly, for organized group investments (Mushawatu, 2024). Figure 1 shows a group of women at a mukando club meeting.

Variations in mukando practices are evident across rural and urban contexts. In rural areas, participation is often closely linked to agricultural activities, sustaining household livelihoods and basic needs, and managing food security, while in urban settings, mukando typically involves more frequent contributions and while it is also associated with sustaining household livelihoods, basic needs, and boosting household food security, it is often times connected to small-scale business enterprises, trading activities, and investments, all aimed at increased income generation. Despite these differences, mukando groups in both settings are underpinned by shared principles of solidarity, mutual support, and collective resilience.

The mukando concept is not unique to Zimbabwe; similar rotating and savings-based arrangements are found across many African countries and in other parts of the world. Arrangement like mukando is called susu in Ghana, stokvel in South Africa, motshelo in Botswana, chama in Kenya, esusu in Nigeria, and ekub in Ethiopia and Eritrea (Ardener & Burman, 1995; Rutherford, 2000; Kamau & Routman, 2011).

In a typical mukando arrangement, members voluntarily contribute a fixed amount of money at regular intervals - weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly - into a common fund. In Zimbabwe, contributions are usually made in United States dollars (or South African rands) as a hedge against inflation, given the rapid erosion of the local currency’s value due to persistent inflation and repeated devaluations.

Different formats of mukando clubs

There are different forms of mukando including the following:

Rotational Savings Mukando: This is the most common type of mukando used. Each member receives the full pooled amount collected once per cycle. For example, if the regular contribution is made monthly, each member receives the pooled amount on a rotational basis until all members have benefited. There is no lending and no need for a treasurer, and the fund is distributed immediately. If 5 people agree to contribute US$100 monthly, it means that each of them will get US$500 every 5th month. Such a lump sum can help the member to make a business investment, purchase a big item, make a significant payment such as school fees etc.
Lending Mukando: In this arrangement, the group pools funds over a fixed period (for example, six months or one year) under the management of a treasurer. Members are permitted to borrow from the pooled funds and are required to repay the loans with interest. Non-members may also access loans, but only through a group member who acts as a guarantor. Interest rates are typically set at around 20% per month for members and 30% per month for non-members, with interest compounding if repayment extends into subsequent months (Masarakufa, 2022). Other literature indicated interest rates of about 2% to 5% (Chirara & Chisale, 2023; Karombo, 2023). In practice, this model operates similarly to a small-scale microfinance institution, and the actual interest rate depends on what group members agree to. At the end of the cycle, the accumulated funds, including interest earned, are distributed among members.
Grocery Mukando: The pooled funds are used to buy groceries in bulk, which are then shared among members usually at the end of the year. December in Zimbabwe often brings a surge of social media activity, with images of women proudly showcasing their mukando grocery hauls. Figure 2 shows an example of groceries that have been arranged for sharing among mukando club members. Those who participate do so with the assurance that their household groceries will be secured well into the new year - often lasting for more than 3 months.
Investments Mukando: In some cases, the pooled funds are used to support cooperative business ventures like sewing or mushroom farming or to buy assets that can generate income such as taxis, lorry or a bus.

Figure 3: Women selling vegetables at the bus rank. Photo by Gladys Mutangadura.

Figure 4: Women selling vegetables at the bus rank. Photo by Gladys Mutangadura.

Unlike banks, the different types of mukando clubs do not rely on written formal contracts or formal regulations. They are informal, based on trust, mutual understanding, and social accountability.

Mukando groups vary widely in both size and contribution amounts. Some groups are small, consisting of as few as three or four members, while others can include more than 100 participants. Contribution levels also differ significantly, with some groups contributing amounts as low as US$5 per month.

For example, ZimNow (2025) reports on a woman who sells roasted nuts, roasted green mealies, and other snacks at a bus rank and belongs to a mukando group of twelve members. Each member contributes US$5, and the group meets every Friday. Figure 3 shows an example. The pooled funds of US$60 rotate weekly to a different woman in the group. As the woman explained, “My round bought school uniforms, and in the next round I want to buy a new two-plate stove” (ZimNow, 2025).

Such low-tier mukando groups commonly use their funds to meet essential household needs, including rent, cooking pots, blankets, clinic fees, groceries, basic furniture like beds, farm implements like hoes or ox-drawn plows, and investments in children’s futures - expenses that are critical to family survival and wellbeing (ZimNow, 2025; Moyo & Zimusi, 2024; Karombo 2023).

ZimNow (2025) reports that mid-tier mukando groups typically involve monthly contributions ranging from US$200 to US$1,000 and are frequently used to support business development and growth, purchase large household appliances and long-term investments. One example given is a woman called Vimbai, who operates a successful online baby boutique and plans to use her mukando payout to purchase a small delivery vehicle branded with her business logo and contact details (ZimNow, 2025).

In another case, ZimNow (2025) notes that a woman called Tariro, a nurse who also runs a small grocery store in Harare central business district, is saving through mukando to cover her son’s university fees. A single mukando payout will be sufficient to fund an entire semester. Across such groups, women invest in assets such as deep freezers, sewing machines, vehicles, backup generators, and solar energy systems. Through these investments, they reinvest, expand their enterprises, and steadily improve their economic standing (ZimNow, 2025).

Figure 5: Cooking pots bought using mukando funds. Photo by Gladys Mutangadura.

High-tier mukando groups also exist, with monthly contributions exceeding US$1,000. ZimNow (2025) reports that in one such group, contributions start at US$5,000 per member per month. Payouts from this group have been used to finance substantial investments, including the purchase of commercial ovens for a bakery that now supplies several hotels, and the payment of a deposit on a townhouse (ZimNow, 2025).

Beyond individual investments, members of these high-tier groups collaborate strategically, negotiating tenders collectively and pooling resources to import machinery, thereby leveraging mukando as a platform for large-scale enterprise and asset accumulation (ZimNow, 2025).

Despite the differences in size and contribution amounts, all mukando clubs share a common goal: helping members save, access lump sums of money, and support one another financially. For many women, mukando is more than a savings system - it is a financial lifeline that supports daily survival, business growth, education expenses, medical costs, and emergencies (Rutherford, 2000).

Recognizing the importance of mukando as a livelihood and financial tool, international and local NGOs are supporting mukando groups through training aimed at strengthening financial management and sustainability. For example: World Vision International provides training and support to savings groups, helping women improve financial management and use savings for income-generating activities; and CARE International supports savings group structures like mukando in Zimbabwe through providing training, financial literacy, and capacity building to help women and households save, borrow, and invest for improved economic resilience (CARE, 2019; Nkomo 2015; Newmarch, 2024).

Important role of mukando in sustainability

Mukando clubs play a vital role in contributing to economic, social, and environmental sustainability. In Zimbabwe, where formal employment opportunities are limited and economic conditions remain unstable, informal savings clubs such as mukando enhance economic sustainability by empowering women to save regularly, access lump sums of capital, and invest in productive activities that help them to reduce or eradicate poverty.

Women commonly use mukando payouts or loans to start or expand businesses, such as market vending, poultry, rabbits, and goat projects, sewing, small grocery shops, food processing such as peanut making, food catering, cross-border trading, tailoring and craft production (Zhakata, 2025; Mutangadura 2026; ZimNow, 2025).

Figure 6: A woman who is a member of a mukando club running a poultry project. Photo by Munyaradzi T. Nkomo, World Vision International.

In the rural areas, mukando clubs have enabled women members to buy or upgrade irrigation equipment to support horticultural projects, buy cattle, start goats, piggery or poultry projects, and inputs for agricultural production such as seeds which are helping generate income to support their livelihoods (Moyo and Zimusi, 2024; Scoones, 2024).

Figure 6 shows a mukando club member who is raising chicken as an income generating project in Mutasa rural area. World Vision International provided training on agricultural business skills.

Grocery mukando clubs are supporting women to enhance household food security. One respondent a member of a savings club interviewed by Mutangadura (2026) in Dangamvura indicated that: “My savings club has helped my family to survive in drought era as the groceries bought in bulk enable us to secure adequate food that will last for a prolonged period of time of more than 6 months”.

Mukando clubs are enabling women to buy houses or housing stands and build their houses in urban areas (Cassim, 2022). Moyo and Zimusi (2024) notes that mukando clubs enabled members to build houses made of brick and corrugated iron in rural areas.

Besides financial support, these informal groups are a major source of psycho-social support. Savings groups give members a platform for social interactions which help members to share ideas and address social problems (Moyo & Zimusi, 2024). Members shared seeds, surplus produce, tips on efficient water usage practices, early warnings about extreme weather events and traditional knowledge on adapting and coping with drought (Mutangadura, 2026). These interactions enhanced community resilience to climate change impacts.

In Zimbabwe, environmental sustainability has become increasingly critical in the context of climate change, land degradation, and water scarcity, all of which directly affect women’s livelihoods (FAO, 2021). Savings clubs play a vital role in supporting women’s adaptation to climate change and in promoting environmental sustainability by providing resources for household food security, investments in drought-resistant crops, conservation farming practices, and green micro-enterprises (Dzvimbo et al., 2022; Moyo & Zimusi, 2024).

Research by Mutangadura (2026) showed that female heads of households who belonged to a savings club had more financial capital compared to non-members. They showed a greater capacity to adapt as they had more financial resources to invest in resilience strategies in gardening such as drought tolerant plant varieties, use of mulching, irrigation, mixed cropping, diversifying cash crops and livelihoods, and recovering from climate-related shocks.

Through shared learning and collective investment, mukando groups further encourage environmentally responsible practices that strengthen food security and enhance community resilience (Scoones, 1998; UN Women, 2021).

Mukando directly addresses at least 8 SDGs

Based on the information presented in this article, the contribution of mukando clubs to sustainability specifically selected sustainable development goals (SDGs) is highlighted in table 1.

Table 1: Summary of the contribution of mukando clubs to the sustainable development goals

Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)	Role of mukando
SDG 1: End poverty in all its forms everywhere	Mukando is helping women to establish income generating projects which have resulted in them making regular income to meet their welfare needs, withstand shocks and reduce vulnerability to poverty.
SDG 2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture	Mukando is enabling women to buy bulk groceries or to generate income used to buy food or strengthening their capacity to grow food.
SDG 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages	Mukando is providing funds for medical care and enabling the purchase of essential household items important for health.
SDG 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all	Mukando is enabling women to support education needs of their children.
SDG 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls	Mukando is directly empowering women.
SDG 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all	Improved access of women to finance enables them to establish income generating projects that contribute to productive employment.
SDG 11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable	Mukando directly empowers women to buy housing stands, build or buy houses.
SDG 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts	Financial access helps women and their households build resilience against environmental shocks. Mukando can also enable women to establish enterprises that promote environmental sustainability such as recycling businesses, and climate-resilient enterprises.

In conclusion, mukando goes beyond an informal financial practice, serving as a powerful development tool that enables women to shape their economic futures and strengthen household and community well-being, which is critical for sustainability.

Challenges experienced with mukando clubs

Despite the many benefits of mukando clubs, there are challenges that members face.

Literature indicates that one of the major risks of mukando is default risk. There is always the risk that some members may fail to contribute when it is someone else’s turn to collect and this can disrupt the whole system and leave some people out in the cold (Mugadzikwa, 2024; Dzoma, 2024). Some research noted that this risk is mitigated by close-knit member relationships. When members are very knowledgeable of each other, trust each other and come from the same community, any chances of a scam are minimized (Mutangadura, 2026).

Mutangadura (2026) in her study noted that participation in savings clubs is generally limited to women who have a steady source of income, excluding the most vulnerable like young female heads of households or more elderly females with more dependents, who have financial constraints. It is important to find ways of expanding access for more low-income women who currently cannot afford to join and contribute regularly.

The other challenge highlighted in literature about mukando is a lack of adequate training on running income generating businesses, which may result in failed projects. Some literature indicates that women might fail to utilize the mukando club to their optimal potential because of limited skills.

Women who participate in mukando operate in an environment that still has traits of gender inequality. Despite being women-led, mukando groups operate within patriarchal social structures and some women face resistance from spouses or male relatives who may demand control over mukando payouts or discourage participation altogether. In extreme cases, women withdrew from savings clubs to avoid domestic conflict (UN Women, 2021).

Another challenge is the lack of adequate data on mukando groups, which is needed for policy planning. Even though it is well known that mukando has a transformative development impact on women who participate, their households and the local economy, limited data is available that can be used to support development of policies to further support the mukando clubs.

Suggestions to strengthen the contribution of mukando clubs to sustainability

Based on the discussion in this article, the following suggestions are proposed to strengthen the contribution of mukando clubs to sustainability.

The government, NGOs and municipal councils or other support institutions such as microfinance institutions should strengthen savings groups through channeling more training programs and financial resources. They can offer low-cost or community-based training tailored to women on entrepreneurship, budgeting, record-keeping, business planning and governance to ensure sustainability of their projects.

The government and other development stakeholders could consider supporting savings clubs to expand access for more low-income women who currently cannot afford to join and contribute regularly. This can be done through external seed funding or matching grants to bring in the excluded households.

Savings clubs should be recognized and included in local municipal development plans and policies. Partnerships of savings clubs with local governments, agricultural departments, and disaster risk institutions can help align club activities with broader sustainable development efforts.

Peer-to-peer knowledge exchange within and between savings clubs should be promoted through established regular forums, or exhibitions where members can exchange experiences.

Linking savings clubs with financial institutions can provide them an opportunity to access larger loans, and savings products which could assist members to invest in climate resilience or other locally-important sustainable development goals.

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