When the devastating flood swept through parts of the Kilimanjaro region, it did more than wash away homes and crops, it uprooted lives and shattered livelihoods. Fields that once yielded sustenance became muddy wastelands.

Homes that once echoed with laughter stood empty or in ruins. Among the hardest hit were women, mothers, breadwinners, caregivers who suddenly found themselves without income, stability, or direction.

But from the mud and uncertainty rose a new chapter, one built on resilience, skill building and entrepreneurship. Through vocational training program tailored to their needs, these women are not just surviving, they are leading change and rewriting their future. 
 
Meet the women who turned tragedy into a training montage (cue the motivational music), thanks to a program that’s changing lives one skill at a time: Equip Them, by TSF. 
 
A Rough Patch 
 
The flood hit like that one unexpected guest who doesn’t knock rushing in, rearranging lives, and leaving behind nothing but water damage and worry. Homes were damaged, small businesses wiped out, and dreams left dangling like laundry on a line in the rain. But Kilimanjaro’s women? They’re made of tougher stuff. Sure, they cried. They screamed. One even reportedly threw her gumboots at the river (no word if the river returned them). But then they wiped their tears, rolled up their sleeves, and decided they weren’t going to be defined by disaster.  
 
Equip Them – The Game Changer 
 
Equip Them, like a plot twist in the best kind of movie. Terre Sans Frontières didn’t just offer sympathy, they offered skills. Entrepreneurship and business training were handed out with a side of encouragement and a sprinkle of funding. Poultry farming, aquaculture and small and medium businesses sprouted like mushroom among the women who formed their umbrella known as TUSAIDIANE, a Swahili word which means let’s help one another.

They didn’t just train these women. They handed them the mic and said, “Your turn to sing a beautiful song.” And let’s not forget the seedling fund, a little capital with a big heart. It helped women kick-start their new chapters. Some launched butcher shops, others opened food stalls, while others opted for poultry farming and horticulture.  
 
One woman, Neema, now runs a thriving food vending shop that smells like heaven and has a waiting list longer than a dry season. Another, Salome nicknamed mother of chicken, is now doing well with her poultry business feeding tens of shops around Moshi town. And Felister? She opened a local butcher, the first of kind in the area, run and served by a woman. 
 
The impact of these efforts goes beyond individual success. As women gain financial independence, they reinvest in their communities. Children go back to school. Homes are rebuilt, not just with bricks, but with hope. The social fabric that was torn apart by disaster begins to mend, thread by thread.

What Equip Them really did was build a community. These women now support each other, laugh together, share marketing tips, and remind each other that bouncing back doesn’t mean bouncing alone. They’re not just entrepreneurs. They’re trailblazers. Flood survivors. Fierce mamas with dreams bigger than Mount Kilimanjaro itself. 
 
The flood may have taken a lot, but it gave something too, a turning point. With the help of Equip Them, these women didn’t just survive. They thrived.

So, next time you hear about Kilimanjaro, don’t just picture snow-capped peaks. Picture a group of bold women in colorful aprons and the scent of fresh mandazi in the air. They’re writing a new story, and it’s one of grit, grace, and glorious comebacks.