Meet the Microentrepreneurs

María Asuncion Climbs the Ladder of Success!

RECENTLY WE HAD the pleasure of visiting with NamasteDirect funded borrower, Maria Asuncion of Jocotenango. In 2007 she heard from a friend that Namaste partner FAPE had a loan group called “Banco Flor Del Frijol” in the town of Pastores, a 20-minute bus ride to the north. Maria soon joined the group and took out a loan of 1,000Q ($133). She used it for operating capital to open a home business. Every day she took a bus into Antigua, about a 15-minute ride to the south, and purchased fruits and vegetables to sell in Joco. She also made and sold tortillas to go along with the produce. Her business was profitable and she was content.

Her business life changed when she attended the Annual NamasteDirect Businesswomen’s Conference at Lake Atitlan last November. She told us “I learned that it was not only possible but that I really needed to grow. We were shown the steps to take and I returned home determined to do so.”

Like a true entrepreneur, she looked around for a business opportunity. She noted on her biweekly trips to the bank meetings in Parramos that the village was short of restaurants. So she enrolled her daughter, Sandra Rivera, who had also become a bank member, to launch a “to-go” sandwich place. To raise the 5,000Q ($667) needed to rent a place at 500Q per month, do some remodeling, acquire a refrigerator, a cook stove, utensils and food inventory, Maria took out a new loan for 1,500Q from FAPE and daughter Sandra did likewise to the tune of 1,000Q. They “raided” the family savings with the consent of Papa for the balance and talked him into building the rustic furniture needed.

They had only been open a month when we visited and Maria said, “It’s too early to tell how good the business will be.” But she is smelling success and has already determined what her next loan will go for – a chicken business because, she said, “I also went to the animal husbandry classes at the conference and raising chickens looks like a good bet!”

Maria has maintained her original business in Joco along with the new business. A year from now she should be well along with her third, giving her something of a “mini-conglomerate.” It is so much fun to see what great things these women can do when given the opportunity for a loan and some training!

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Marta Leticia Sagche Lopez (Leti) - Our newest Weaving Specialist?

NAMASTEDIRECT FELLOW ABBEY AUGUS recently visited the remote village of Tzancaguip  outside of Quiche.  Tzancaguip is a community of 214 families located in the San Antonio Illotenango area of Quiche. The village lies about 6 Km (10 minutes) from San Antonio. Although there was no borrower meeting in Tzancaguip while I was there, I spent the afternoon visiting women’s homes and learning about their lives. There are 28 Edubanco borrowers in this group, 18 with girls in school. The average loan size is 2000 Q ($286), and most women work in the fields of agriculture (fruit, rice, beans), animal husbandry (chickens, turkeys, pigs), handicrafts (weaving, clothing, wood). 

I spent the most time with Leti, who attempted to teach me how to weave. My feet have never been as numb in my life as they were after less than half-an-hour seated on my heals! Leti was born in Antigua where her family owns a weaving business. She learned to weave when she was eight years old. Leti moved to Tzancaguip when she got married, although her husband still works during the week in Antigua. She has no children, as her only daughter died at seven months from severe diarrhea and dehydration. Leti explained she could not get to the hospital in time to save her daughter, and is scared to have another child. Another borrower, Florinda Calel also lost one of her six children at seven years to the flu (possibly meningitis).

As I tried to focus intently on the intricate stitches I was being taught, Leti described her business. It takes her six months, weaving all day, everyday, to make one huipil which Leti can sell for 2-3000Q ($286-$429). The cost is huge for families with many daughters, as it is traditional for every woman to have at least one huipil. Additionally, Leti explained it is customary to give one’s mother-in-law a huipile costing around 6000Q ($857)!

Leti lives in a big house in a central location, just across the road from the church. She would like to open a small store in her home so passerby buy her weaving, along with other necessities, as they leave church.

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Dona Catalina is thirty years old and was born in Chiqueleau, as was her husband (who is 35 years old). Her three children were hiding and peeking out from behind a wall as I interviewed her. Catalina has two sons (one is 12 and in the 5th grade, the other is 8 and in the 1st grade) and one daughter (who is 10 and in the 4th grade). She was resolved to send all her children to school even before participating in the Edubanco program, but reports that the loan is helping relieve the costs of having three children in school (and not around to help her). She is willing to find some way to pay for her children to continue school past the sixth grade in another town. Dona Catalina never went to school, and cannot read or write. Her parents did not support educating girls and were only willing to send the boys to school. Catalina, however, recognizes the importance of educating her daughter as well as her sons, and is committed to helping them continue their education as far as they can.

Originally, she wanted to use her 2000Q ($286) loan to help in her husband’s business buying and selling chili. Because chili is not grown in the community, her husband has to travel great distances to buy it, and she thinks she needs a loan of 6000Q ($857) to start a profitable business with this good. In the meantime, she bought a cow for 2000Q ($286) which she will sell for 4000Q ($571). She also weaves to make a little extra money. Her main worry is keeping her cow healthy and vaccinated. She is concerned because she does not have adequate space for the cow in front of her home as her husband is cultivating tomatoes and she cannot let the cow eat them. Additionally, although her father taught her how to raise her cow, she is concerned because she had no prior experience in this business.

More broadly, Don~a Catalina thinks about the need to care for her family and keep her house safe and clean.

She like CARE’s program because the repayment of the loan is at the end, giving her time to fatten her cow and sell it for enough to pay back the loan. She also mentioned that being a part of the group is bringing her satisfaction in her life, and she greatly appreciates the programs teaching her things she did not know before. For example, she mentioned she does not want to have more children now, and she learned how to care for her chickens. In the future, Don~a Catalina would like to gain more skills, work more, and earn more so she can have her own money that is not in loans but that is hers.

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BLANCA JUAREZ GARCIA'S STORY is so powerful because it illustrates how microcredit loans really do change lives. Doña Blanca was the oldest of eleven siblings. Her mother was physically abusive and forced her to forgo schooling and instead take care of her younger brothers and sisters. She was not allowed to date and her mother would hit any boy that came to the house asking to date her. Nevertheless, one boy persisted and, after being assaulted on four different occasions, was allowed to date Doña Blanca. They were married one year after they started dating because she saw marriage as the only opportunity to escape her awful living situation. However, shortly after they were married, she discovered her husband was an alcoholic. This greatly troubled her and for years she tried to get him to stop drinking. Her husband did not think he has a drinking problem and, as a result, her efforts were fruitless.

Doña Blanca’s husband had neither land nor a house when he married her. His uncle gave them permission to build a house on his land, but as they had no money, they lived in a one-room shack made out of plastic bags. Her husband was a soldier for the Guatemalan government and his job required him to be gone for twenty days to a month at a time. He would only provide her with 200 Quetzals a month, an amount that was not nearly enough to live on. Doña Blanca had no other choice but to begin making money herself, but with a new-born baby, she had to work at home. She took out her first loan, which allowed her to begin making clothes and raising pigs to sell in the market. Later, she began cooking tamales and other dishes to sell. From the money she earned in these endeavors, Doña Blanca saved a little each month with which to buy cement blocks. After several years, she had enough blocks to build a house so that she no longer had to live in the shack made of plastic bags. In 1997, she took out a small loan with which she built a second small house on her property which she currently rents out. Her third loan helped her to buy clothes, which she then began selling on foot. Her fourth loan allowed her to buy a small warehouse in which to store her merchandise at night. Another loan provided her with the money to rent a stall in the local market, where she currently sells clothing. Her most recent loan has allowed her to purchase higher quality clothing to sell in her stall.

Through the micro-credit loan process, Doña Blanca has been able to improve her living situation. The money she received has helped her expand her businesses and build safe and comfortable housing. Furthermore, the loans have allowed her to become financially independent. This fact, combined with the increased self-esteem she has developed through her relationship with the other borrowers, has allowed Doña Blanca to build up the confidence to kick her husband out of their house. While this was very difficult for her, Doña Blanca knows it was the right thing to do for both her children and herself. This story is so moving because it not only demonstrates how microcredit loans help move women out of poverty, but also how they help women develop independence and a sense of self worth.

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Petrona Raymundo’s Beautiful Guipils

If you live or are visiting Acul or any other part of the Ixil Triangle area of Northern Guatemala and want an especially beautiful “guipil” (a traditional shirt of the region), be sure to look up Petrona Raymundo. Her guipiles are special because each one is an original design that symbolizes the traditions and colors of that particular region of Guatemala. They are vibrant and intricately woven by hand.

Petrona is 41 with seven children that range in age from 9 to 21 years. All of Petrona’s children still live with her. The younger ones attend school and the older ones assist her in running her business and in keeping up with household duties. Petrona is grateful that her children have the opportunity to go to school and one of her dreams is to continue to support her children to further their education with her increase in income through the sale of guipiles.

She remembers the time during the civil war when there was so much violence in Acul that many families were moved out of their houses. When women and families were able to return to their homes the poverty was so severe they didn’t even have access to basics like soap.

But things are looking up now that Petrona has received a loan – the first ever in her life—of 960 Q ($128 US) from funds provided by NamasteDirect and administered by its partner in Guatemala, Friendship Bridge. With these funds Petrona was able to buy a much wider variety of colors of thread. This means she is now making a higher quality, more attractive product for which she can charge more money. Now she devotes a month to making each guipil – and look at the resulting garment she is wearing in her picture!

Petrona has a lot of pride in her craft and eventually she would like to sell to larger markets outside of Acul where the demand for high-end products is greater. Petrona is aware that accessing markets outside of her community could be difficult but she is up for the challenge. In addition to supporting her children’s education, Petrona will also be saving from her profits to buy a cow, which will provide her with milk and cheese for her family as well as an opportunity to sell these products to her neighbors. A cow at $330 is a pricy commodity to own in Acul and most families cannot afford one. But through her hard work and motivation, Petrona will make her dream come true!

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Enriqueta and Paulino’s Vision

The Franco-Mirando’s live in the De Sam Rafael area of Villa Canales in Guatemala. They are an inspiring couple as both have a vision and they support each other on the path to fulfilling the dreams that live and breathe on their fingertips as they go about their daily work. Their goal is to provide them with the opportunity to pursue a career of their choice

When you approach their house their house your eyes are drawn to a giant bougainvillea bursting with pink flowers. Then you see a sign on the front porch that proclaims, “I Am A Triumphant Woman!” Enriqueta has a small shop to the right of the house where she sells basic household items such as soap, water, and sugar. She also prepares and sells hot lunch food items on some days.

When NamasteDirect’s partner MUDE announced that loans would be available in their area, Enriqueta and Paulino together borrowed 1000Q ($133) to purchase two little pigs and to rent a plot of land for growing beans and corn. Paulino was already growing pineapple, which is harvested twice a year, on some communal land set aside for agriculture.

Little pigs will grow into big pigs and produce even more pigs. This will mean additional cash flow, which will be used to buy additional diversified inventory for Enriqueta’s store. The pineapple, of which Paulino is especially proud, and the beans and corn will generate both food for the table and crops for the cash market.

It is the children that Enriqueta and Paulino think about as they toil both indoors and out. How long can they afford to keep them in school? Through grade school? A must! Through high school? With lots of hard work and some luck – they pray they can do it. Will they be able to get some college? Is it too much to dream for?

Like so many of the borrowers funded by NamasteDirect, the future of their children is being formed in the parents’ sweaty work of today. Enriqueta and Paulino are grateful that this future looks so much brighter as the result of this, their very first, microcredit loan.

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Gloria’s Tortillas

A FRIEND AND I stopped at Gloria Paz’s house near Yojoa, Honduras. At a large opening cut in the wall facing the dusty road, one could buy the fresh, hot tortillas that are Gloria’s specialty. As we munched our way through two delicious tortillas apiece, we asked about her business.

“I’ve made tortillas for many years,” Gloria responded, “but only a few were for sale. I couldn’t afford the things I needed to make more. Oh, I could have borrowed money from a coyote (loan-shark), but they charge 15% interest per month, and there would have been no profit.”

“So what changed?”

Gloria broke into a smile. “You know about our community bank, Union y Esfuerzo?” Union and Effort – what a great name,
I thought, and nodded yes.

“With a loan from the bank I can now buy my corn meal delivered to my door. Before, I could only afford the little bit I carried home on the bus. And what a savings! It’s the same with the firewood for cooking. Now I can make a good profit on every tortilla I sell.”

“You mean you know your cost for each tortilla?” I asked incredulously.

“Certainly, let me show you.” She reached below the counter and hauled out a bound, blue ledger proudly emblazoned with “Gloria Paz tortillas” in white ink. Flipping the pages, she said, “See, this is what I spent last month. And over here is the number of tortillas I sold. When I divide my expenses by the number of tortillas, I determine how much each one cost. I compare that to the selling price to get my profit percentage. I want at least 30% profit.”

“Beautiful work, Gloria, beautiful.” I appreciated what she was doing as only an accountant would. I wondered if she had more than a third-grade education. Doubtful, I thought.

“And did you make a profit for the month, Gloria?”

“Sí – here it is.” She pointed at a number at the bottom of the page.

“That’s impressive! Is it good pay for all your hours of work?”

“No, you don’t understand, Roberto. That’s my profit. My wages are over here, in my list of expenses. I took the minimum wage here in our country for my pay.”

I whistled softly. This was as sophisticated business thinking as I’d seen in the U.S.!

“But Gloria, where did you learn all this?”

“It’s in our training. Each community bank member develops a business plan with a trainer. To get a loan, we must have an approved plan. And we must show our labor as a cost, not a profit. Is this not right? In your country, do people think wages and profits are the same thing?”

I shook my head, marveling at her astuteness. “What do you do with the profits, Gloria? Put them all back into the business?”

“Some of them I put over our heads!” She laughed gaily and pointed up to the well-fit tile roof, a sharp contrast with the ugly, hot, leaky tin roofs nearby.

“Now I can afford medicines for my children when they are sick. And our kids can stay in school longer, instead of having to go to work at a young age. And I have a secret fund,” she grinned mischievously. “If you come back in two years, you will see a new house!”

On this high note we said good-bye. “Muchas gracias, Gloria. I’ll be back.”

“Sí, sí, but only come when I’m open for selling the tortillas, Roberto.” She pointed at a sign with her selling hours on it.
“The rest of the time I’m making them. It’s more efficient that way, don’t you think?”

— Bob Graham

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