Elsie Mamphoke’€™s face breaks into a huge smile as she holds up three fingers.

“Yes, I tell my children to bring me three condoms at night even if I’€™m not planning to use it. I want them to know I am having sex with my husband, I want them to think we are using a condom, that I am planning to have three rounds and that I will be using a condom every time,” says the tall, middle-aged woman with a mischievous glint in her eye.

This level of frankness from Mamphoke is almost unheard of in this neck of the woods, but clearly not out of place for the women of Gamatodi, a small rural village about 15 minutes outside Burgersfort, on the Mpumalanga/Limpopo border.

For the past three years the women of Gamatodi and other parts of Limpopo have been part of an innovative pilot project known as the IMAGE (Intervention and Micro-finance for AIDS and Gender Equity) study.

The IMAGE study is a collaboration between the Department of Health, the Small Enterprise Foundation (SEF), the University of the Witwatersrand’€™s Rural AIDS and Development Action Research (RADAR) programme and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. It aims to find new ways to communicate and test HIV prevention messages and to challenge long held beliefs around gender inequality.

Referred to by the women as “SEF”, the project also seeks to promote support among  a select group of women in four  ‘€œintervention’€ villages and to improve household welfare, change attitudes and behaviour, and prevent new HIV infections and gender-based violence.

So far, results have been promising with women overcoming their initial resistance to confronting controversial and deeply personal issues.

The IMAGE research shows that fear of violence limits women’€™s ability to make safer sexual decisions. In addition tribal norms in more traditional rural communities often reinforce inequality between men and women.

With this in mind, the IMAGE study developed a campaign that directly addresses women who subscribe and uphold these traditions. These women were found to be most at risk but are also the teachers of their communities.

Sitting in the shade at the local chief’€™s home, Ophelia Qobongwana, a tall, attractive woman with striking features, points towards the heavens when she talks about difference “SEF” has made in her life.

“SEF came into my life like a flying machine. I am no longer going backwards, only forwards,” grins the single mother of two.

“I used to be very poor. I cleaned other people’€™s houses, I was forced to beg for food. Now I feel like a madam, I can pay my children’€™s school fees and at night I sleep in the light where before I watched the light in the other houses,” says Qobongwana, who  now  sells secondhand clothing and vegetables.

Listening to Qobongwana’€™s account, Mamphoke nods in agreement. “SEF is my husband. Even if I wanted to leave it one day I can’€™t. It’€™s what keeps us alive,” she says. Mamphoke, who has been living in Gamatodi since 1965, is in her sixth loan cycle and sells chickens and vegetables, supporting her husband’€™s welding business and cares for her three children.

Both women have become educators in their communities, focusing on rape, HIV prevention, domestic violence and other issues relevant to the community.

Micro-finance programmes using a system of group-based lending were originally developed in India and Bangladesh but were not developed as a health intervention.

As part of the IMAGE study, women in the poorest households are identified and approached by SEF staff. The women, preferably neighbours, organise themselves into groups of five with each member of the group guaranteeing the loans by the other group members. Initial loan amounts are around R500.

Repayment rates are high (90%) and at the end of the loan repayment by the entire group of five, a new loan cycle may begin. Loan sizes generally increase in line with business value with some individual women now accessing loans of R1 000.

Presently there are four loan centres in the IMAGE study sample with about 40 loan recipients in each group.

Once a fortnight a “centre” of 40 borrowers meet to make repayments, discuss business problems and apply for new loans.

According to Dr Julia Kim, founder member of the IMAGE project, micro-finance is found to be an empowering experience for women.

“In many of these places it’€™s the first chance that women have had to begin earning their own money and to bring money into the household. That in turn can change their relationships with their husbands, the way they’€™re perceived by their families and community,” she says.

The SEF meetings are initially used as a forum to introduce the “Sister for Life” programme, the HIV/AIDS and gender education project.

There are two phases, the first involving a structured series of 10 training sessions. Sessions comprise a range of topics including gender roles, gender inequality and cultural beliefs, sexuality, body functioning and relationships, domestic violence, as well as topics relating to HIV prevention.

The study is currently operating in four villages with data gathered from the participating women and members of their household as well as young people within their community. Parallel to this, data is gathered from four other villages that do not yet benefit from SEF.

According to RADAR’€™s Research Manager, Rico Euripidou, researchers are hoping to observe a change in attitudes as well as health outcomes (prevalence of HIV) in those villages that are part of the programme.

One of the facilitators, Lulu Ndhlovu, grew up in the area. Much younger than most of the women, Ndhlovu is not afraid to discuss traditional taboos. During a fortnightly meeting a woman asks Ndhlovu whether it is not improper for women to wear pants and whether these women are to blame for the fact that men rape them.

Ndhlovu responds: “You say it is wrong to wear pants and look sexy, even if you are decent. But I disagree when you say you are raped because you are wearing pants. Men rape even old women and babies. We give the men power as we blame the women,” she explains.

The group grows excited and animated when culture is discussed or debated but Ndlovu points out: ‘€œAs we progress they will all be quiet because then we are talking about them, we’€™re talking about their daughters, the people that they love and all of a sudden it’€™s not funny anymore and they see people who are dying of AIDS and its not a pretty sight. The thought of them actually contributing to that person having to go through so much because of gender issues because of culture and everything else’€¦it’€™s not funny anymore.”

Phase two is an open-ended programme that aims to support participants in developing and implementing community wide responses appropriate to their own communities.

Ndhlovu recalls a quiet woman who “sculpted” her own unique response while educating her community.

“She told me that she had been workshopping with young people but that she had a real dilemma when they asked her how they had to use a condom. She realised that she had no willing demo models so she made her own from wood and pulled two out her bag. I almost collapsed,” shrieks Ndhlovu.

“She still added that she knew it was small, but that it was good enough,” she adds.

Ndhlovu describes her time with the woman as an amazing experience and adds that they have changed her perception of rural women.

“They are the slickest people you will come across, they just know when to play the role of humble, rural women,” she says.

Micro finance in not a panacea but it creates a wealth of other opportunities including skills development, HIV education and job creation.

SEF currently benefits 19 000 women and will expand to reach 40 000 over the next five years.

E-mail Anso Thom