Simple Bookkeeping and Business Management Skills.
Non-formal education

by Ria Meijerink Gender and Development
FAO regional Office for Africa
Accra, Ghana, November 1994
2nd edition October 2001
Pages 88
ftp://ext-ftp.fao.org/SD/SDW/Simple%20Bookkeeping%20and%20Businnes%20Management%20Skills.pdf

Simple Bookkeeping and Business Management Skill’s training is a training document to teach small scale entrepreneurs how to use their numeracy skills in improving their businesses. It aims:
- to teach participants on how to use their numeracy skills in business activities, thus allowing them to continue practising their newly acquired skills; and
- to train them in how to improve their businesses by using simple business management techniques.
The course targets small-scale entrepreneurs, both from rural and urban areas. Participants can be individual entrepreneurs or groups engaged in agricultural or other small-scale economic activities. Even though the course is mostly directed towards women, its content is also relevant for male entrepreneurs. Participants are expected to be able to do basic calculations, but they do not necessarily have to know how to read and write words. Where appropriate, symbols are used instead of words. Literacy courses can be held supplementary to the course on 'Simple Bookkeeping and Business Management Skills.
The course explains the difference between "Money in" (credit) and "Money out" (debit) and provides examples of "Income" and "Expenditure". It teaches how to maintain a "cash book" (using symbols for the goods sold or the services rendered) and practises calculations on "profit" and "loss". Participants learn that "Profit" should be divided into: monies used for the household, for the business and for savings. "Savings" should be divided into: money to replace tools (or depreciation), money to expand the business (investment), money for emergency cases and money to improve the way of living. Furthermore, the participants learn when to sell or buy on credit and how to keep track of repayments in a "credit book". The training also includes lessons on "Costing and Pricing" and teaches basic notions of management when establishing a new business.

Related links

Activities of the FAO Regional Office for Africa (RAF)
http://www.fao.org/sd/seaga/index_en.htm
Gender and food security website
http://www.fao.org/gender/gender.htm
Socio-economic and Gender Analysis Programme (SEAGA) web site
http://www.fao.org/sd/seaga/index_en.htm

Related articles

Enhancing women's managerial skills for small scale business enterprises through numeracy and simple bookkeeping training
by Ms Diana Tempelman
Gender and Development
FAO regional Office for Africa
Accra, Ghana, October 2000
http://www.fao.org/sd/wpdirect/wpre0133b.htm

Figures for bookkeeping 1 e 2.
Non-formal education

By Diana E. tempelman
Gender and Development
FAO regional Office for Africa
1993 December
1st re-print 1995
2nd re-print 2001
figure for bookkeeping 1.pdf
figure for bookkeeping 2.pdf

This guide for facilitators who want to teach illiterate women and men how to count. This “Facilitators Guide” together with the “Learners Primer” form a training package. Figures for bookkeeping is a basic training document to teach numbers, calculations and the use of money. It teaches numeracy (counting) and not literacy (reading and writing letters, words or sentences). This training has been specially made for illiterate women and men who work in agriculture, fisheries, forestry or who have a small business.
Part 1 of the “facilitator’s guide” gives a general introduction on the use of the student’s document, how to adapt the training material to other currencies, what attitude the facilitators should take to stimulate the learning of the participants.
Part II explains the contents of the course and clarifies the details of the document Figures for bookkeeping.

Related links

Activities of the FAO Regional Office for Africa (RAF)
http://www.fao.org/sd/wpdirect/wpre0013.htm
Gender and food security website
http://www.fao.org/gender/gender.htm
Socio-economic and Gender Analysis Programme (SEAGA) web site
http://www.fao.org/sd/seaga/index_en.htm

Related articles

Enhancing women's managerial skills for small scale business enterprises through numeracy and simple bookkeeping training by Ms Diana Tempelman
Gender and Development
FAO regional Office for Africa
Accra, Ghana, October 2000
http://www.fao.org/sd/wpdirect/wpre0133b.htm

Programmes for Women in Agriculture and Rural Development
by FAO regional Office for Africa
Gender and Development
Accra, Ghana September 1996
http://www.fao.org/sd/wpdirect/wpre0014.htm

Education and Food For All. A Compendium of FAO Experience in Basic Education
by Katia Noseck Sommer, Lydia Sorflaten and Johanne Lortie
FAO
Rome, October 2001
http://www.fao.org/sd/2001/kn1003a3_en.htm

Contact: Diana E. Tempelman
Gender and Development
FAO regional Office for Africa
P.O. Box 1628
Accra, Ghana
Diana.Tempelman@fao.org