VSLA (Village Savings and Loan Association) membership refers to individuals who voluntarily join a self-managed group within their community to save, borrow, and support each other financially. Within the Agrcocenta context VSLAs can exist either as groups within cooperatives or outside cooperatives but within communities. In cases where the VSLAs exist outside a cooperative, the VSLAs will be created and managed by non-cooperative field agents.
Below is the information required to create a VSLA in the mobile app
| Field | Required/Optional | Validation/Notes |
|---|---|---|
| VSLA name | Required | Must be at least 3 characters long |
| Minimum contribution amount | Optional | Must be a number |
| Cooperative | Required | Must select from a dropdown of cooperatives in the region or be tied to the cooperative of the logged-in user |
| Maximum membership size | Optional | Must be a number with a minimum of 5 |
Standard group size ranges between 15 and 30 members. Smaller groups are easier to manage and encourage transparency and cohesion. The VSLA gets to select their maximum group size when the group is being created. This number can be modified later if they want to expand the group. They can ONLY downsize the group's maximum number if they remove some members. For example, if a VSLA initially sets its maximum group size to 20. When it reaches 20 members it can only change its group size to 15 by removing 5 or more members.
| Eligibility Criteria | Description |
|---|---|
| Community-Based | Members typically come from the same locality or village to foster trust. |
| Voluntary Participation | Membership is optional but requires agreement to the group's constitution and rules. |
| Age Limit | Most VSLAs admit individuals aged 18 years and above. |
| Income Activity | Members usually engage in income-generating activities (e.g., farming, petty trading) that enable consistent contributions. |
Within the Agrocenta context, VSLA members must already be farmers enrolled on to the platform. An agent should ONLY add members to a VSLA from within the VSLA. Below are the details to collect when joining a VSLA
| Field | Required/Optional | Validation/Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Farmer name | Required | Select from a list of farmers either in the region or in the cooperative, depending on the type of agent |
| Designation | Required | Pick one of the following: president, secretary, treasurer, organizer, member |
| Role/Responsibility | Description |
|---|---|
| Saving | Members are expected to save regularly by buying shares during each meeting. |
| Borrowing | Eligible members can take loans from the group's pooled funds. |
| Meeting Attendance | Active participation in regular meetings is mandatory. |
| Voting Rights | Every member has an equal vote in group decisions. |
| Social Fund Contribution | Members contribute to an emergency fund used for unforeseen group support. |
Members elect peers to handle leadership and operations. This election happens offline and is not replicated in the app. Leadership tenure is typically fixed for a year or a cycle and is renewable or rotated. The available positions that get elected are:
| Position | Responsibility |
|---|---|
| Chairperson | Leads meetings and enforces group decisions. Also referred to as the President |
| Secretary | Keeps records of savings, loans, attendance, and fines. |
| Treasurer | Manages cash flow and ensures financial integrity. |
| Organizer | Arranges meetings and out of town events. |
New members are registered and trained on rules and procedures. This training usually happens during meetings. An active member or a member in good standing is one who participate in savings, loans, meetings, and group activities. Members are eligible to exit after a crop cycle or by notifying the group. Before exiting, members can collect their accrued savings and profits.
To ensure smooth operations, members agree to fines for:
In This Document
