By Mutayoba Arbogast
It is an early December evening in Hayaland, the verdant lakeside belt of Tanzania’s Kagera Region, where weddings are occasions of rituals, community and reputation.
As the year draws to an end, families leave their urban homes for the wedding celebrations in the village, committee meetings multiply, neighbours, relatives and old classmates mobilise around the wedding households and many offer their support in the form of promises to contribute.
For Mzee Mutagwaba, a soft-spoken farmer from a village in Bukoba, those promises would soon turn into a cause for concern.
A week prior to the wedding of his son Joseph, the wedding committee submitted its financial report, a mixture of family contributions and money raised by the committee, which, on paper, seemed to tally with the costs of the event.
The family had given Sh5 million in cash while the committee had mobilised another Sh3 million, most of which had been paid. However, relatives and friends had only given Sh2 million of the Sh4 million they had promised to give towards the wedding costs.
While the expenses for the big day had been met, the family was short by Sh2 million, creating tension as the wedding day drew closer. Suppliers were waiting to be paid while musicians were yet to be paid for their services at the wedding. Within the family, anxiety was mounting by the day.
The wedding eventually took place, but at a high social and financial cost to the family, which had to scale down many of its expenses, borrow heavily at the eleventh hour and explain away its financial difficulties to many guests at the wedding.
What was meant to be a public celebration turned out to be a private family affair for the Mutagwaba family.
The experience is not unique to the Mutagwaba family. In Hayaland and across East Africa, vows have become an integral part of weddings, funerals, school projects, church activities and community development campaigns. However, the culture of making public commitments, particularly of finances, has created challenges as people scramble to honour their word or face embarrassment in the community.
Promises That Do Not Build Desks
The effects of unpaid pledges reverberate within families, at community events and in development projects, ranging from schools to health facilities and roads. This writer has witnessed a similar incident in his district concerning a primary school that had a shortage of desks, forcing some pupils to sit on the floor while others shared desks.
Concerned parents and community members formed a development-minded group and launched a fundraising campaign on a WhatsApp platform with a view to mobilising resources to make desks for the school. The group was vibrant, communicating almost on a daily basis, sharing photographs of the conditions of the school and discussing the number of desks needed before any contributions had been made.
The campaign appeared to be gaining traction as 170 people pledged financial support to the cause, giving the organisers reason to hope that the desks would soon be made. However, four months later, when the campaign came to an end, it emerged that more than 50 of the 170 people who had pledged had not made any contributions to the campaign.
This meant that there was a shortfall that delayed the production of the much-needed desks while those who had given financially were disgruntled with the organisers for not delivering on their promise of new desks. The organisers were left trying to explain to pupils, parents and teachers the reason for the breakdown of the campaign, which left many questioning the integrity of the organisers.
In essence, a pledge, unlike cash, does not always translate into tangible support, particularly when the person making the pledge has no intention of honouring it. In community development events, unpaid pledges can have detrimental effects ranging from financial losses to derision from the very community that one seeks to woo.
Why People Pledge but Fail to Pay
The culture of making unfulfilled promises is common in Hayaland. Jane Lwomile, a prominent Emcee and radio presenter in Bukoba, reveals that the problem emanates from the very first meeting that is convened to discuss the arrangements for the event.
“These gatherings are public spectacles and people make pledges with the intention of portraying themselves as people of means and influence,” she explains. “Sometimes people also vow generously in front of friends or political leaders to gain favours.”
Lwomile, who has managed many weddings, funerals and community activities, explains that making public commitments is a way for some people to advertise themselves, influence opinion or seek promotions from employers, friends or political bosses. In some instances, men promise generously to woo women or to demonstrate loyalty to a family, church or political party.
Community psychologists note that some of the factors that influence people to make public but unfulfilled pledges include:
The pressure of the community, particularly when people fear that their giving will be inferior to that of others.
An expectation that one’s financial situation will improve and therefore the ability to give will be available.
The need to obtain social rewards, including praise, favours or increased social status.
Political positioning, including the need to gain goodwill from voters or community leaders.
The failure to plan how to honour one’s word and the attendant consequences.
A sense of immunity from the consequences of failure to deliver on one’s word.
At fundraisers for school projects or public infrastructure, politicians and influential community members may also pledge generously in a quest to woo voters or influence opinion. In some cases, pledges may be made with no intention of honouring them, with detrimental effects on the morale of the organisers and the image of politicians who fail to honour their word.
It is not uncommon for communities to lower their expectations for future events after experiencing broken promises in the past. As one teacher noted during interviews for this story, “A wedding is a pledge of love and partnership. When the guests go back on their word, the family feels betrayed. It is worse when it is a school because children are the ones who suffer for promises that were not kept.”
Tradition Meets Modern Pressure
Village traditions and modern financial pressures converge in Hayaland in a manner that has redefined fundraising for community events such as weddings and school projects. Traditionally, weddings, funerals, naming ceremonies and other community activities had been funded through the collective efforts of family members and the community.
If one family hosted another during a funeral, it was expected that the reciprocation would follow when the time for the event arrived at the host family. Reputation was a critical factor, with each community member vying to outdo the other in displays of generosity, particularly during funerals, naming ceremonies and weddings. One could not afford to miss out on such community events as it was perceived that failure to contribute would result in being “crossed” by the community, thereby denying one life-saving support in the future. The system worked because of the strength of communal responsibility, which ensured that promises were not made lightly and that failure to deliver would result in social sanctions.
However, the evolution of the cash economy, urbanisation and increased individualism has undermined communal responsibility, with many people failing to honour even the most basic of community obligations. In many cases, family members and friends who live in urban centres such as Dar es Salaam, Kampala and Nairobi are unable to contribute financially to village events due to the demands of the city lifestyle. WhatsApp groups have also created a new avenue for airing criticism of those who fail to honour pledges, regardless of the consequences.
Swahili proverbs have long warned against the dangers of unfulfilled pledges, illustrating the wisdom of the early villagers who understood human nature. “Heri kenda kuliko kumi nenda uje” advises that one should utilise the nine that one has because one cannot be certain that one will ever get the additional one. Another saying, “Fimbo uliyonayo ndio iuayo nyoka,”, captures the essence of preparedness, using the analogy of a stick that one holds to kill a snake, to emphasise the need to utilise resources that one has because one cannot be certain of utilising those that one does not have.
The pressure to give during weddings and other community events can be so profound that hosts and committee members base their budgets on the promises that have been made, leaving them exposed to criticism from family and friends when suppliers are not paid because of unpaid pledges. Organisers are also hesitant to reveal the truth because of the social and financial cost.
The Wider Cost of Broken Promises
Unpaid pledges have far-reaching consequences, ranging from the effects that they have on family finances and relationships to the detrimental impact that they have had on community initiatives. Family members who fail to honour their word may have to incur debt to pay for the wedding or community project, while those who do pay may end up arguing with those who have refused to contribute.
Community projects that suffer the fate of unpaid pledges are forced to scale down their operations or abandon them altogether.
Academic and civil society writers have warned that the effects of unpaid pledges extend beyond the family or community to impact negatively on national development, with community initiatives such as education and health facilities bearing the brunt.
Failure and Collapse of Village Community Banks
Some findings from Meru District in Arusha Region, reveal the real situation of unfullfilled promises.
When leaders of community initiatives fail to honour their word, citizens lose trust in them, questioning their integrity, particularly when they continue to solicit funds from the public for projects that they have failed to deliver on. Citizens are left asking why they should give when those with resources and influence are not prepared to give.
How Communities Can Protect Themselves
In an effort to address the challenges of unpaid pledges, hosts, committees and development groups can take some measures to protect themselves from the fallout.
Request partial payment
Requesting between 30% and 50% of the amount that has been promised gives the contributor a sense of satisfaction while cushioning the host against the shock of non-payment.
Record every pledge
By recording every pledge, the organisers have a reference of those who have promised to give, together with the amounts that have been promised.
Budget according to cash received
By budgeting according to cash received, the organisers eliminate the temptation to increase the scale of their event or development project.
Close the books two or three weeks before the event
By closing the books earlier, the organisers eliminate the surprise of a funding shortfall on the eve of the event or when the project is on the verge of completion.
Prioritise needs
For weddings, food and venue costs should come first, while for development projects, priority should be given to essential items such as desks, books and sanitary towels.
Encourage donations in kind
In some cases, it may be easier for contributors to give in kind, through materials, labour or through services, than it is to give in cash.
Where possible encourage mobile money payments and ensure that receipts are issued
This removes ambiguity in the payment records.
Keep people informed of the cash that has been received or utilised
This promotes transparency and discourages people from questioning the organisers’ integrity when they observe that not everyone pays.
Keep a kitty for emergencies
Contributors should set aside a portion of their contributions for contingency purposes.
Treat errant contributors sensitively
Communities can develop alternative means of soliciting contributions while reducing the visibility of errant contributors.
Encourage people to give conservatively
Leaders can discourage the culture of lavish giving by appealing for contributions from the masses.
Reaching for a New Culture
To mitigate the effects of unpaid pledges, communities need to rethink their approach to fundraising, soliciting contributions and the evaluation of generosity. Generosity should not be measured by the size of a cheque that is presented during fund-raisers or the size of a promise that is made in public but by the extent to which one gives towards a just and equitable society.
Radio presenters, Emcees, religious leaders and local leaders of opinion can play a leading role in reengineering the culture of generosity by calling for contributions of cash, kind or time, based on financial needs rather than emotional manipulation.
Lwomile, the Emcee, believes that MCs can play a leading role in reshaping the perception of generosity by calling for contributions that are based on cash needs rather than inflated desires.
“We should praise the givers without inflating their contributions,” she argues “After all, it is not the amount that has been given but the fact that it was given that should be recognised.” Lwomile adds.
Development organisations and local leaders can invest in alternative community fundraising strategies such as savings groups that will cushion community initiatives against the shocks of unpaid pledges. Organisations can also invest in financial literacy and basic bookkeeping skills to equip volunteer treasurers with the capacity to manage finances with confidence. For community projects such as schools, it may be more prudent to ask contributors to contribute smaller amounts that have been agreed to fund specific needs rather than encourage large contributions that may not be utilised.
Mzee Mutagwaba will probably move on from the unpaid pledges that marred his son’s wedding day but in many communities across East Africa, unpaid pledges continue to be a challenge, with many families and development projects bearing the financial and social cost.
