NAMPULA, Mozambique (May 22, 2002) - The view here stretches on for miles. One can see the sky in all directions, dotted with white fluffy clouds. Outcroppings of granite shoot straight up from the earth, like enormous chess pieces on the world’s largest board.

It seems like anything could — and does — grow in Nampula. Cassava, cotton, cashews, bananas, papayas, tomatoes, cabbage, peppers, oranges, peanuts, sunflowers, garlic, palms, acacia, paprika, bamboo, sorghum, maize, beans, onions. Trees and shrubby foliage blanket the terrain. At first glance, the only thing missing are people.

And then, tucked in amongst the plants, small groups suddenly appear. As if nature decided that a few people from time to time would be OK. There is an earthen house or two, and then it’s back to the bush. Out here, communities are small and people are independent.

So when 15 farmers pool their resources and sell their products collectively, tracking yields and serving as a distributor for neighbors with smaller operations, it makes an impact. When 11 people start a savings and credit operation, allowing them to buy a sewing machine or a tractor, the community feels the difference.

For example, when a man saved for a year to buy a hand-operated sunflower seed press, his achievement touched off a chain reaction. That one action had a beneficial impact on the farmers from whom he buys, the laborers he employs, the wholesalers who sell his oil at market, the neighbors who prefer the taste of the sunflower oil to the more expensive cotton oil, and — most directly — his family of four.

Arthur carefully pours the finished product. (©CARE 2002/Brian Atkinson)

"Before, I was always worried, trying to take care of my family. But now I don’t have so many things to worry about," said Artur Bolacha. "I am looking toward the future. Life is going the way I can imagine it to go."

Bolacha learned about the seed press five years ago when CARE brought one to his village and did a demonstration. To operate it, he fills a funnel with sunflower seeds and, while standing, raise a handle chest-high. Pushing the handle up and down forces the seeds through the funnel and creates a trickle of oil.

Bolacha didn’t think much of the press when he first saw it. But, after seeing his neighbor’s growing business, Bolacha started to save for a machine of his own. After one year, he had enough money to pay the deposit.

Today, he has a thriving business, capable of producing 20-30 liters of oil a day, which he sells for 75 cents each. The machine was paid off years ago.

"My dream is to build a big house. Each month, I save a little bit," said Bolacha.

And, in Nampula, little bits add up to a lot.