HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) 鈥� Melisa Kasu said her mother died when the family was least prepared. Funerals in demand a large and expensive send-off with food and music, and loved ones can slide into debt to avoid any public shame.
The 29-year-old Kasu said the local burial society arrived to save the day, carrying huge pots and sacks of corn meal and other supplies. They even lit the cooking fire.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the time I decided to join them,鈥� she said.
She took over her late mother鈥檚 membership in the society in 2023, and discovered a surprising cultural shift was underway: Burial societies in parts of Africa are expanding to take care of the living, too.
Aside from supporting members’ funerals, some now offer grocery savings plans and even small-business incubators. They are helping families survive challenges like rising costs, limited access to bank loans and unstable incomes in a country where over two-thirds of people are informally employed. Members pay a small monthly subscription.
At a recent meeting of Kasu’s Kuchemana Burial Society, death hardly featured on the agenda. Women sang, debated and pitched business ideas ranging from poultry farming to detergent-making.
鈥淲e wanted dignity in death. Now we are striving for it in life,鈥� society secretary Nyadzisayi Mirisawu said. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 want members suffering while alive.鈥�
A group of women founded the society in Kuwadzana, a township in Zimbabwe鈥檚 capital of Harare, in 2021 to spare families what members called 鈥渆mbarrassing鈥� funerals that expose poverty.
Burying a loved one well is one of the most important family obligations. Kuchemana means 鈥渕ourning one another鈥� in the local Shona language. But membership means more than funeral preparation.
The group has 40 members aged between 23 and 72. They pay $3 monthly and receive groceries, cooking help and a $150 cash payout when a loved one dies.
Alongside funeral contributions, members now pay $10 monthly into a collective savings club. Members and trusted people in the community can borrow from the fund at 20% interest, with members sharing profits yearly.
鈥淏orrow for health care, school fees or projects,鈥� Mirisawu told members gathered recently under an avocado tree. Clad in matching T-shirts and floral skirts, they lined up to pay subscriptions. A separate grocery program allows them to buy basics in bulk.
For Kasu, who was laid off from a hardware shop in 2022, the group’s attraction lies less in burial payouts than in the financial lifeline it provides. She received $100 from the savings cycle in December. She borrowed another $30. No bank hassles.
鈥淚 bought gas tanks and a scale. Now I sell cooking gas to neighbors,鈥� she said. 鈥淏usiness is good. I support myself.鈥�
Researchers say such changes reflect a broader pattern across Africa.
鈥淏anks normally do not lend to the poor or the unemployed, and governments are not providing enough support,鈥� said Sharon Chilunjika, a lecturer in social sciences at Midlands State University in Zimbabwe. 鈥淧eople are using an institution they already trust, the burial society, and expanding it to cover more of their needs.鈥�
She called funerals 鈥渙ne of the most underrated or underappreciated drivers of household poverty鈥� in Africa, with families sometimes turning to loan sharks or selling their assets.
鈥淭he way you bury your loved one says a lot about who you are as a family. A cheap coffin or scant food invites judgment. The society will talk,鈥� she said.
In Zimbabwe, burial societies date to the early 20th century, in the colonial era, when migrant workers formed mutual aid groups to ensure dignified funerals far from home in places like neighboring South Africa.
The tradition has endured in Zimbabwe, where funeral insurance is more common than insurance, which many people cannot afford. Official statistics show fewer than one in 10 has it.
Reports by insurance firms, research companies and the country’s statistics agency indicate funeral policies are the most widely held form of insurance in the country, with providers, and even mobile phone companies, promoting low-cost policies.
But members say the community-based burial societies survive in large part because they provide something that companies struggle to match: a sense of belonging.
鈥淚t is your neighbor, your church mate,鈥� Chilunjika said. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 ask you to fill a form. They come to your home and comfort you.鈥�
___
For more on Africa and development:
The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP鈥檚 for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at .
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
