Grameen Foundation : Get involved : Gift Catalog : Expand a microbusiness
$360 - Expand a microbusiness
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| Maritza used a second microloan to successfully grow her business. |
With $360, a woman in the Dominican Republic can overcome a severe disability and become self-sufficient, proud to have achieved success against all odds. When Maritza was just 19, a woman in her village started an argument with her and threw a poisonous liquid in her eyes, rendering her incurably blind. She refused to treat her blindness as a weakness, and remained determined to use her skills to earn a living. She took out a loan of 5,031 pesos (US $150) from Esperanza, a Grameen Foundation partner, and began to sell ice cream and cookies. Her business has now grown after taking out a second loan of 12,132 pesos (USD $360), and she earns $300 per month.
Her business has now grown after taking out a second loan, and she earns $300 per month. She owns a refrigerator to keep drinks and other refreshments, and a freezer to store more ice cream. Maritza is married with two teenage children, and she has been the sole breadwinner of the household for the last two years, receiving no support from her husband. Now, instead of the entire family sleeping, eating and living in just two rooms, she has paid to expand their house. Her children are healthy because she can now pay for medicine when they get sick. She is even learning Braille so that she can become even more independent, never allowing her blindness to stand in her way. She says, “I like to work on my own because I do not like to rely on asking for help…I am not blind, I have a visual impediment.”
Grameen Foundation : Get involved : Gift Catalog : Expand a microbusiness
Grameen Foundation uses microfinance and innovative technology to fight global poverty and bring opportunities to the world's poorest people. With tiny loans and financial services, we help the poor, mostly women, start businesses and escape poverty. Our global network of 55 microfinance institution (MFI) partners including our Growth Guarantee partners has touched more than 34 million people in 24 countries. In addition, we introduced and now sustain technology initiatives (Mifos and Village Phone) in Cameroon, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda, bringing our total country outreach to 28.
+1-202-628-3560 www.grameenfoundation.org
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