Soap Is the Solution
In 2024, staff members Church S. and Joanne started working with 14 mothers in the Sembule zone, which is one of the two slums or catchment areas in Kampala that Peter’s Heart focuses on. Four of the mothers came to our office for mutual relationships and evangelism. We met another 10 mothers at one of the community churches, called Sanctuary of Hope, for discipleship and relationship building. Our regular gatherings and engagement with these mothers helped build a close bond and connection with them over time. The mutual trust we developed has given us an opportunity to help them create a sustainable soap-making business venture.
A group of 10 mothers started saving for the business and established a leadership team to help the group move forward with a clear purpose. Right now, the group includes a chairperson, vice chairperson, secretary, treasurer, mobiliser, and information personnel. This leadership has helped them stay on track and keeps everyone updated with what is happening in the group.
Getting Down to Business
To get started, each mother contributed 10,000 shillings. Their combined 100,000 shillings is equal to about $28 in US currency. With that money, they were able to produce four jerricans or 80 liters of liquid soap. While a jerrican of soap sells for 30,000 to 35,000 shillings, depending on the buyer, the group quickly realized that it is hard to sell a 20-liter quantity of soap, and they could make more money by selling smaller, more usable amounts.
Together, the mothers agreed to look for used empty soda bottles and used empty mineral water bottles of 300mls. They can sell each bottle of their liquid soap for 1,000 shillings, which nearly doubles their profit and provides affordable and much-needed soap to people in the slums.
Soap Making Explained
Church and Joanna worked with the mothers to acquire the ingredients and learn the formula to make the soap. It takes these eight ingredients:
1. Ungalo—fights the formulation of foam on the liquid soap.
2. Sulphonic acid—This helps to lower the surface tension between water and substances like dirt, grease and oil, allowing for more effective cleaning. It is a cleaning agent and helps with stain removal.
3. Industrial salt/sodium chloride—acts as a thickener.
4. Caustic soda—acts as a strong alkali in the saponification process, reacting with fats and oils to create soap molecules and glycerin.
5. Carboxymethyl Cellulose CMC—is a thickener and emulsion with stabilizing and binding properties.
6. Urea—is a preservative and prevents bacteria growth.
7. Color—in Uganda, green is the most common color for liquid soap, which is what we use. Orange or yellow coloring is used for hair shampoo.
8. Perfume—Lemon and lavendar scents help mask any unpleasant odor of the soap’ s ingredients and enhance the overall sensory experience for the user.
The women who sell the soap receive an instant commission and any remaining proceeds are reinvested into the business. The startup is growing slowly and shows promise for being a sustainable venture. A donation of just $30 could more than double their available supply of soap. Consider supporting this effort by donating today.