Tuesday, when the CHWS returned we reviewed the CPR training to consolidate it into their repertory of skills, then did Heimlich maneuver training in the morning. In the afternoon, Edie did simple physical therapy exercises for relieving neck, back, shoulder and leg pain. She then used me as a model for terrible posture and some of the young women as positive examples, then showed us all how improving our posture and doing these exercises can improve one's physical well-being. It was amazing that all the CHWs except for the youngest man felt some improvement in muscular well being. Edie also demonstrated on District Superintendent Joe Bleck exercises to strengthen and loosen his lower left leg which he broke 3-4 months ago and taught his wife Paulette to help him with them.
Deb had her second session with Sébastien's longest running Microenterprise group. I am sure I recognized some of the participants from prior visits. She said later they were obviously not as used to being students as the younger women from the Women's Skills Center who she trained in the morning. Most of the afternoon class had not had an opportunity to do their homework and thus missed an important tool for the program.
Meanwhile Charissa and Jim went with Dr. Bashir to visit Dakar hospitals. They went to 3 hospitals, the last being the major University Hospital in Dakar, run by a 2 star General who gave them a personal audience and a tour of the hospital. They were all quite impressed, though I don't believe they do any heart transplants there.
From 6-8pm the pastors and a few church members have a prayer meeting which several of us attended. There was again lots of music and singing and a period of audible prayers of supplication which I found very moving. This was followed by dinner and a private PT session by Edie with Pastor Marie Agnes who was having some difficulty with her arm. We didn't get to bed until well after 11pm, with an early rise scheduled for Wednesday morning.
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The Lean Startup training went well today although there was a significant difference between the two classes.
ReplyDeleteThe 3 groups in the first class, of women learning to sew in the church's women's skill center all did their customer interviews. Here's a short recap of their ideas and the results.
Group 1 decided to see if they could decorate restaurants. They had a vision for sewing curtains, attractive wall art, tablecloths and other products to help restaurants reflect the type of food they serve or create a distinct presence (brand.) They interviewed 10 restaurants and found there was only demand for tablecloths. They further found that the demand for tablecloths was split into two customer segments - decorated tablecloths and plain tablecloths. They negotiated pricing with three restaurants and gained one as a client. Others needed to see samples of their work before discussing an order. Only 3 out of the 10 were not interested. This was a great success because tablecloths are constantly ruined by spilled food and wear out quickly so they are likely to get repeat business - they also found a niche that is under served which allows them to keep their prices higher.
The second group had an idea about creating accessories that would match dresses others were making or match imported Chinese clothing. For their 10 interviews they talked to businesses who were selling local or Chinese clothing about offering their accessories. They received a good response but found they will need samples. Subsequently, they found a church member who will loan them a set of accessories to use as samples. So, they will also be able to start their business without a loan or capital.
The third group had an idea about importing unusual fabric from Europe so they talked to 10 dressmakers. The response was positive but they all wanted a sample so we talked about selling the first client the fabric at cost then taking that around as the sample before delivering it. The client would get a very good price for the fabric in return for taking a chance and the students would have a sample to show other potential clients. They are going to try to do so.
Unfortunately, the women in the afternoon class did not do the interviews. As I mentioned yesterday, they sell small things all day in hopes of earning around $4 and feeding their families. Taking time to attend the class was hard for them so they needed to work all the hours between the classes.