Diary from the field - cycling from Vietnam to Cambodia

Head of Lendwithcare, Tracey Horner, has embarked on a challenge of a lifetime. For the past seven days Tracey, along with ten other CARE supporters, has cycled from Ho Chi Minh city in Vietnam to Battambang in Cambodia (a gruelling 460km) to raise vital funds for CARE's poverty-fighting programmes. 

Before peddling off into the Mekong Tracey met with one of Lendwithcare's newest microfinance partners, MACDI, who are based in northern Vietnam. 

What follows is her diary from the first six days.


Day 1:

I left a very cold London bound for Hanoi and the first leg of my trip.  Since my trip comprises a field visit to our partner MACDI; a presentation to one of our corporate supporters, Hogan Lovells; a 460k cycle ride; and some beach holiday time at the end, I had to pack a rather diverse range of clothing!

I always look forward to visiting our partners and meeting some of the entrepreneurs we are supporting and although I am looking forward to the challenge of the cycle adventure; having never done anything like this before, and being under prepared I have a bit of trepidation about what might lie ahead.



Day 2:
 

Arrived in Hanoi at 6am and checked into my hotel. I expected it to be cooler in Hanoi than in the south of the country but not 15 degrees as it has turned out to be. I decided to have a wander round Hanoi to get my bearings, followed by a couple of hours sleep.  Min Thai, the CEO of our partner MACDI, came and picked me up for lunch and took me to Hanoi's Ethnology Museum which provided a fascinating insight into the different groups of ethnic Vietnamese. It became clear why so many of the Lendwithcare Vietnamese entrepreneurs have very similar names.  There are only around 60 different surnames in Vietnam, and each area has around five different surnames.  I ended the day with a little stroll back to the hotel, giving myself time to take in this vibrant city.



Day 3: 

Today we went on a trip to the famous Ha Long Bay.  It was a 6 hour round trip to get there but it was well worth it - despite the weather being cold, cloudy and foggy.  Later that day I met with Regan Leahy, from Hogan Lovells citizenship team, who is accompanying me on the field trip since she is taking part in the sponsored cycle ride later in the week.

Day 4:

Regan and I left the hotel at 8am to travel three hours to Hoa Binh province where some of the entrepreneurs we have supported through Lendwithcare are located.  The car journey gave us the opportunity to learn more about MACDI's work from Min Thai and in particular learn about the broader work they do in addition to microloans.  It is clear that Min Thai is passionate about her mission to improve the lives of poor people, particularity those living in remote rural areas of Vietnam.  


Life is very hard indeed if you are far from a town or city with few assets and no access to formal financial services. The closer we got to our destination the more obvious the difference became between the big cities and the rural communities. 




We arrived at MACDI's tiny office which is home to five loan officers and one other member of staff.  The office is rented at a very low cost from the local authority.  We also met with two local officials who told me how much they value the work of MACDI - particularly the work they do to improve the environment by helping people install bio gas facilities to turn their animal waste into gas.  


They also mentioned that they appreciate the training that MACDI give to borrowers, training in things like animal care, protection of the environment and home sanitation.





To see some of MACDI's assistance in action, Regan and I visited a home that was in the process of having a bio gas plant installed.  It was a very interesting process to see. It starts by digging a massive hole in which they put the chamber that the waste will flow into and later be turned into bio gas. 

MACDI worked very hard to set up a relationship with a local bio gas installing company to negotiate a good price for their borrowers. A part of the agreement includes after care assistance, which ensures that if there is any future maintenance needed the borrower is able to access this help for free or at a greatly reduced price.

This is the theme that ran through my visit, MACDI linking people with the private sector - and also trying to link borrowers to appropriate markets for their products.

After watching the bio gas installation, we visited a couple more entrepreneurs. Part of a Lendwithcare evaluation is to check a random sample of entrepreneurs that appear on the website and ensure that all the details match up with the loan that the borrower has received.

Every house we visited began with a ritual of pouring us all some green tea - delicious but there is only so much green tea you can drink in one day!

That night we stayed in the only hotel in the area.  It was very cold in this mountainous region - so cold that both Regan and I slept in our clothes!

Day 5: 

Regan and I left the hotel at 8am and ate a bowl of Pho (noodle soup) for breakfast and visited a number of Lendwithcare entrepreneurs.

The first women we met was called Phoung Dinh Thi. 

One of the things I always ask Lendwithcare entrepreneurs about is their children and on this occasion, as soon as I did so, Phuong Dinh Thi started to cry.  She explained how, her disabled daughter had died only last May.  

She had spent months prior to her daughter's death at home caring for her daughter and had to spend all their meagre savings on medical treatment.  As a mother who has also lost a child it was very hard to listen to Phuong Dinh's story and not be visibly moved. 

Phuong Dinh has one other child and she said that the loan from Lendwithcare has helped her a lot since she was able to buy some pigs and chickens as well as 10 geese which will provide an income for her and her family.  In the future she would like to buy a motorbike as this would make her life a lot easier - it is very remote and she has to walk a long way with a very heavy load to take her rice to the mill and then the local market.  She would also be able to take her son to school which is a 6km walk away.

Between visits we stopped along the roadside many times to buy produce from local people; Min Thai said she always likes to buy from the local people. She is actually in the process of setting up a website to showcase products to others in Vietnam and help her clients find a market for their products.

At the end of a long day of meeting Lendwithcare entrepreneurs we returned on the three hour journey to Hanoi and spent the night in Hanoi.

Day 6:

The next day we visited Hogan Lovells in their Hanoi office to give a presentation about Lendwithcare and have a meeting with Hogan Lovells and the MACDI staff. 

Min Thai took the opportunity to set up the sale of a pig from one of her borrowers to a Hogan Lovells staff member. As the new year (Tet) holiday is approaching it is common for people to buy lots of food for the celebration.
 

Later that day I flew from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh city to stay the night at a colleague's house. Tim Bishop works for CARE International UK but is based in Vietnam as a Regional Private Sector Engagement Specialist, he has been working for many years on promoting the role of business and markets in development and has a fantastic blog, which I highly recommend.   

Tomorrow the cycling starts ... and I have to say, I'm not quite sure I'm ready for this ... I'll keep you posted!

By Tracey Horner

Guest Blog - A gift that keeps on giving

When for my birthday I asked for donations to my charity instead of presents none of my friends or family thought that was such a good idea. To be fair many of them give already but generally people like to give gifts, to pick something out and see it be appreciated. To me the idea of getting donations without painful form filling, standing in the cold or embarrassing ‘asks’ seems like a great gift but for people who can’t see it being spent, see the money making a difference or people enjoying what it provides for them it’s perhaps less rewarding.
With donations as with gifts it’s great to be able to see it make someone happy.
One of my friends, Helen, was listening when I told her about how much I loved Lendwithcare. How not only was the scheme a great concept but one that comes with an amazing amount of consideration and attention to lenders. My enthusiasm for Lendwithcare led me to ask to visit their partner in Manila, something I wrote about in a previous post and since then I have continued to be impressed with the varied and regular updates, enthusiastic blogs from staff and frank explanations when things have gone awry.
I’ve bought Lendwithcare for three people that I can remember. For my young niece as a nicer way of giving her some money, although I hope she’ll never withdraw from the account, for my dad I chose an entrepreneur from Malawi as he’d spent time there many years ago and for someone who I suspect might never have cashed it in. And this is where vouchers really come into their own.
 We’ve all received presents we didn’t want. Without wanting to name and shame I’m sure my whole family would understand that we don’t really want to receive any more t-shirts or key rings bearing pictures of holiday destinations. But this present doesn’t get abandoned in a drawer or only worn to bed. Even if that person never looks at it again the money is already in the right place doing its job.
For my birthday last year Helen got me a Lendwithcare gift voucher. So now even though I’ve put money of my own in over the years I now think of her gift every time I get a repayment or have enough in my account to make a new loan. That’s an awful lot of enjoyment already out of one voucher. I’m sure it will carry on for years to come.
With donations as with gifts it’s great to be able to see it make someone happy.
One of my friends, Helen, was listening when I told her about how much I loved Lendwithcare. How not only was the scheme a great concept but one that comes with an amazing amount of consideration and attention to lenders. My enthusiasm for Lendwithcare led me to ask to visit their partner in Manila, something I wrote about in a previous post and since then I have continued to be impressed with the varied and regular updates, enthusiastic blogs from staff and frank explanations when things have gone awry.
I’ve bought Lendwithcare for three people that I can remember. For my young niece as a nicer way of giving her some money, although I hope she’ll never withdraw from the account, for my dad I chose an entrepreneur from Malawi as he’d spent time there many years ago and for someone who I suspect might never have cashed it in. And this is where vouchers really come into their own.
We’ve all received presents we didn’t want. Without wanting to name and shame I’m sure my whole family would understand that we don’t really want to receive any more t-shirts or key rings bearing pictures of holiday destinations. But this present doesn’t get abandoned in a drawer or only worn to bed. Even if that person never looks at it again the money is already in the right place doing its job.
For my birthday last year Helen got me a Lendwithcare gift voucher. So now even though I’ve put money of my own in over the years I now think of her gift every time I get a repayment or have enough in my account to make a new loan. That’s an awful lot of enjoyment already out of one voucher. I’m sure it will carry on for years to come.

This blog has been reposted here with permission from Amy Lythgoe.
Originally posted here

When for my birthday I asked for donations to my charity instead of presents none of my friends or family thought that was such a good idea. To be fair many of them give already but generally people like to give gifts, to pick something out and see it be appreciated. To me the idea of getting donations without painful form filling, standing in the cold or embarrassing ‘asks’ seems like a great gift but for people who can’t see it being spent, see the money making a difference or people enjoying what it provides for them it’s perhaps less rewarding.

With donations as with gifts it’s great to be able to see it make someone happy.

One of my friends, Helen, was listening when I told her about how much I loved Lendwithcare. How not only was the scheme a great concept but one that comes with an amazing amount of consideration and attention to lenders. My enthusiasm for Lendwithcare led me to ask to visit their partner in Manila, something I wrote about in a previous post and since then I have continued to be impressed with the varied and regular updates, enthusiastic blogs from staff and frank explanations when things have gone awry.

I’ve bought Lendwithcare for three people that I can remember. For my young niece as a nicer way of giving her some money, although I hope she’ll never withdraw from the account, for my dad I chose an entrepreneur from Malawi as he’d spent time there many years ago and for someone who I suspect might never have cashed it in. And this is where vouchers really come into their own.

 We’ve all received presents we didn’t want. Without wanting to name and shame I’m sure my whole family would understand that we don’t really want to receive any more t-shirts or key rings bearing pictures of holiday destinations. But this present doesn’t get abandoned in a drawer or only worn to bed. Even if that person never looks at it again the money is already in the right place doing its job.

For my birthday last year Helen got me a Lendwithcare gift voucher. So now even though I’ve put money of my own in over the years I now think of her gift every time I get a repayment or have enough in my account to make a new loan. That’s an awful lot of enjoyment already out of one voucher. I’m sure it will carry on for years to come.

When for my birthday I asked for donations to my charity instead of presents none of my friends or family thought that was such a good idea. To be fair many of them give already but generally people like to give gifts, to pick something out and see it be appreciated. To me the idea of getting donations without painful form filling, standing in the cold or embarrassing ‘asks’ seems like a great gift but for people who can’t see it being spent, see the money making a difference or people enjoying what it provides for them it’s perhaps less rewarding.

With donations as with gifts it’s great to be able to see it make someone happy.
One of my friends, Helen, was listening when I told her about how much I loved Lendwithcare. How not only was the scheme a great concept but one that comes with an amazing amount of consideration and attention to lenders. My enthusiasm for Lendwithcare led me to ask to visit their partner in Manila, something I wrote about in a previous post and since then I have continued to be impressed with the varied and regular updates, enthusiastic blogs from staff and frank explanations when things have gone awry.

I’ve bought Lendwithcare for three people that I can remember. For my young niece as a nicer way of giving her some money, although I hope she’ll never withdraw from the account, for my dad I chose an entrepreneur from Malawi as he’d spent time there many years ago and for someone who I suspect might never have cashed it in. And this is where Lendwithcare Gift Vouchers really come into their own.

We’ve all received presents we didn’t want. Without wanting to name and shame I’m sure my whole family would understand that we don’t really want to receive any more t-shirts or key rings bearing pictures of holiday destinations. But this present doesn’t get abandoned in a drawer or only worn to bed. Even if that person never looks at it again the money is already in the right place doing its job.

For my birthday last year Helen got me a Lendwithcare gift voucher. So now even though I’ve put money of my own in over the years I now think of her gift every time I get a repayment or have enough in my account to make a new loan. That’s an awful lot of enjoyment already out of one voucher. I’m sure it will carry on for years to come.

By Amy Lythgoe

Guest Blog - Ethical Loans Transform Lives in the Developing World

This blog has been reposted here with permission from Owen Knight.
Originally posted here

Joining LendWithCare three years ago was one of the best decisions I have made.During this time, my loan has been recycled four and a half times to a total of twenty-five entrepreneurs in six countries. Together with loans from other lenders, it has assisted people who would otherwise have no access to finance on the journey to work their way out of poverty. The individual loans have enabled entrepreneurs to buy raw materials, stock, tools and other essentials to start or develop their business and take control of their lives, in such diverse areas as farming, food production, general stores, market stalls, carpentry, vehicle repairs and sewing and tailoring.

The wonderful thing is that this has cost me absolutely nothing. With UK interest rates on savings at an all time low, it is a no-brainer to make better use of the money by helping people who want to improve their lives through their own efforts and with dignity.

LendWithCare makes interest-free loans to carefully screened microfinance partners that charge ‘reasonable and fair’ interest rates (or charges) to ensure that loans used are for ethical purposes and offer transparency. Loans are repaid in monthly instalments and, once they are repaid, you have the option of reinvesting with a loan to a new entrepreneur or withdrawing the funds. If you can afford to lend a minimum of £15, you will be making a real difference.

LendWithCare is supported by, amongst others, news presenter Alastair Stewart and Deborah Meaden of Dragon’s Den. The Co-operative was a founder launch partner.

Click here to take a look at the videos on the LendWithCare website, to learn more of their work and the benefits to entrepreneurs. 

You will see why, this Christmas, I have decided to double the amount of my modest loan to a worthwhile organisation.

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Owen Knight

Guest Blog - This Christmas, give the gift of giving.

This Christmas, give the gift of giving.
Posted on 30 November, 2014 by Keith Channing

Hang on; I didn’t mean that.

This Christmas, give the gift of lending.

For some months, my wife and I have been involved, in a small way, with Lendwithcare, a micro-finance organisation set up by Care International, one of the world’s leading aid and development organisations.

Microloans from CARE International UK The premise is simple: an entrepreneur in one of the world’s least affluent areas proposes a business idea to a microfinance intitution (MFI). The MFI approves the plan and grants the requested loan. The entrepreneur is then helped to construct a profile that appears on the lendwithcare.org web site. Supporters (that’s you and I) visit the site, select a profile that interests them, and make a contribution to support it. Once the full amount is reached, it is sent to the MFI, releasing their funds to support another entrepreneur.

As the supported business develops and grows, the loan is repaid, and the repayments find their way into your account with lendwithcare. You can then either withdraw them or, more likely, use them to finance another entrepreneur; and so the virtuous cycle continues.


What’s so great about this? Let me tell you what I think:

My money doesn’t go into a ‘pot'; I choose which individual or group is going to benefit from my contribution, based on a good amount of information about the applicant(s) and the business proposal. It’s personal. Many years ago, I was on an emergency blood donor list. On more than one occasion, when we were called to the hospital for an emergency bleed, we (usually only three or four of us) were introduced to the patient who would be receiving our blood. A cup of tea and a rich cream biscuit never gave that feeling!

The full amount of the loan goes to the desired recipient. There is an (optional) addition of 10% of the amount loaned to help cover the running costs,

It is a loan, not a gift; it can be re-used,

I have often heard the hackneyed ‘give a man a fish and you feed a man, teach a man to fish and you feed a family'; think what happens when you lend a man the money to buy a fishing rod, or maybe to repair or upgrade a fishing boat.

One of the people I have been privileged to support in recent months is a Togo man, married with two small children. He owns a small computer shop that provides office services such as photocopying, word processing and computer training. He also sells computer and office equipment.

He applied for a loan to buy a new photocopier and to expand his business. He is also keen to transform his small shop into a training centre, to pass his knowledge on to others. His ultimate goal is to build up his business so that he will be able to provide a better standard of living for his family.

Like most of the people I have been privileged to support, in many walks of life and across three continents, he is fully funded, and is on target with his repayments. The repayments that arrive in our account are all used for new loans.

What has all this to do with Christmas? Simply this: follow this link to lendwithcare.org, and buy your loved one, your friend, your colleague the gift that, quite literally, keeps on giving – a lendwithcare gift voucher.

Green Microfinance - supporting renewable energy in Vietnam

Biogas facility in Vietnam © MACDI 2014

In recent years a growing number of ‘green microfinance’ initiatives have encouraged eco-friendly microenterprises and supported the use of renewable energy. One such programme is implemented by Lendwithcare’s partner in Vietnam, the Microfinance and Community Development Institute (MACDI). MACDI provides loans to rural households so they can install household plants that use animal waste to generate biogas, a clean fuel that can be used for cooking, lighting and heating.
According to Minh Thai Dinh Thi, Director of MACDI, the motivation for providing biogas loans has as much do with the economic as the environmental benefits. She explains that “since households do not need to spend money on buying firewood, and for the poorer families the time spent by women and girls gathering firewood, biogas plants simultaneously save money, time and also reduce deforestation”. 

Biogas offers other compelling advantages. It promotes better health through eliminating smoke from cooking with firewood. It also reduces harmful pathogens from animal waste that might lead to illnesses (the Asian Development Bank estimates more than 70 million tonnes of animal waste is improperly disposed of each year in Vietnam, contaminating the environment and often finding its way into streams and rivers). Importantly it also converts animal manure into an improved fertiliser, saving farmers money on expensive chemical fertilisers. Many families who have installed biogas plants have also commented that their general environment looks cleaner with less foul odours and flies. While the biogas technology can work in most climatic conditions it seems particularly suitable to countries such as Vietnam with generally warm temperatures and sufficient rainfall. 

Biogas being used for cooking in Vietnam © MACDI 2014

However, despite the potential benefits, the adoption of biogas technology has been slow. This is mainly because of the relatively high cost of biogas plants for people living in rural areas with limited financial resources. To overcome this obstacle, starting in 2011, MACDI has been providing households with loans for between US$500-700 with a long repayment period of between 24-36 months to install the biogas plants. On average, households with at least two cattle or six pigs can generate sufficient biogas to meet their daily basic cooking and lighting needs and the investment pays for itself after about three years. To date, almost 400 families have benefited from the loans. MACDI negotiated with a specialist company to build, service and maintain the biogas plants to ensure they are correctly and safely installed so that they have a long life span. MACDI also provides borrowers with training on management and upkeep of the biogas plants to ensure that they receive the best returns from their investment.

Most of MACDI’s borrowers are small-scale farmers who grow rice and maize and typically raise livestock and poultry. Whilst previously the pig, cattle and buffalo manure and crop residue was left to rot or burned (wasting valuable plant nutrients), households now feed the manure mixed with water, but also some crop residue and other organic matter, into the biogas plant where it decomposes. Under anaerobic (without air) conditions the rotting matter produces biogas which is pumped into the home, usually the kitchen, and used for cooking, lighting and in the winter months heating as well. The slurry which has a high nutrient content is used as a fertiliser and crop yields of vegetable crops such as potatoes and onions, fruit, sugar cane and rice have reacted particularly favourably. The biogas generally comprises  just under 60% methane, almost 40% carbon dioxide and a small fraction of other gases such as hydrogen, nitrogen  and hydrogen sulphide. Although methane is a damaging greenhouse gas, since it is burnt the process is essentially ‘carbon negative’.

The potential for biogas in Vietnam is huge, with more than two-thirds of the population earning a living from agriculture, animal husbandry and fishing and most have traditionally relied on wood, agricultural residue and animal dung for their energy needs. Lendwithcare is supporting MACDI to increase the scale and outreach of its green microfinance programme to ensure more rural households in Vietnam are able to install household biogas plants and have access to clean, sustainable and affordable energy.




You can invest in a green loan today by simply visiting the Lendwithcare website www.lendwithcare.org

By Dr Ajaz Ahmed Khan, Lendwithcare Microfinance Advisor

Is peer-to-peer (P2P) lending an efficient way to support microfinance?

The Lendwithcare.org Homepage

Peer-to-peer (P2P) micro-lending platforms, such as lendwithcare, have become a popular method of supporting small businesses in developing countries. Local microfinance institutions (MFIs) select borrowers and appraise their loan applications, which if approved, are financed by the P2P platform. Lendwithcare was established in 2010 and to date some 17,000 individual lenders have financed loans to more than 8,000 borrowers across ten countries.  Our experience over the past four years is that as their loans are repaid, lenders invariably re-lend; rather than withdraw their money. While lendwithcare has proven to be very popular with supporters, is it an efficient way for MFIs to access funding?

The obvious attraction for MFIs is that they do not have to pay any interest whatsoever on the capital they receive from lendwithcare. Although some MFIs are permitted to accept savings, most of our partners are legally prohibited from accepting deposits. Therefore, in common with many other MFIs, they must rely on external loans to finance their lending. Typically, they access capital from Microfinance Investment Vehicles (MIVs); these are specialist microfinance investment investors such as Blue Orchard, Oikocredit, Triodos and responsAbility, and from local commercial banks. Both these categories of lenders charge interest on their loans, although the MIVs typically charge lower rates than commercial banks and some also provide technical assistance and expertise.

Although lendwithcare does not charge any interest, the funding we provide is not cost free for our MFI partners. This is because they have to visit borrowers, collect details regarding their businesses, take photographs, upload all this information onto the lendwithcare website and then provide further updates on borrowers’ businesses. If the MFI’s clients are living in isolated villages spread over a large area then the administrative obligations associated with participating in lendwithcare could be considerable. This could mean that any benefits arising from interest free capital might be negated by an increase in operational costs. This raises the question, might it actually be cheaper for MFIs to simply access capital from the MIVs and other commercial lenders, even though they have to pay interest, than from lendwithcare?

During a recent visit to Cambodia, this is a question I posed to the Cambodian Community Savings Federation (CCSF) who have been working with lendwithcare for the past three years. CCSF works with rural clients, mainly rice farmers, in the provinces of Battambang and Banteay Meanchey in North West Cambodia. Pisey Phal, CCSF’s CEO, confessed that while they do access loans from several MIVs they prefer funding from lendwithcare because it is much cheaper for them.

Lendwithcare Entrepreneur with CCSF loan officer © CARE/Nancy Thomas

Pisey mentioned that during 2013 lendwithcare provided CCSF with US$416,000 to fund loans to more than 500 individual borrowers as well as a small grant to help with administrative costs. CCSF used the donation to cover the salary paid to one employee who was contracted specifically to work on lendwithcare – the grant just about covered all of his annual salary, although it did not cover his expenditure on fuel and the small amount of time that other staff, particularly the finance manager, spent on lendwithcare related duties. To access an equivalent amount of funding from an MIV or commercial lender, CCSF would have had to pay at least US$32,800 in interest charges, possibly more. Pisey added that lendwithcare funding would still be cheaper for them even had it not received the administrative grant. She added that the greatest advantage of lendwithcare funding is that it provided CCSF with a secure source of funding over a longer period of time, loans from MIVs in contrast are generally for shorter periods of 1-2 years. Furthermore, since loans from lendwithcare are repaid monthly and transfers simply offset against new loans being financed, Pisey mentioned that the exposure to possible currency fluctuations is greatly reduced.

From discussions with lendwithcare’s other MFI partners, they make an effort to ensure that any extra administrative costs are kept to a minimum by integrating lendwithcare duties with other routine operational tasks. For example, our partner in Ecuador, Fundacion de Apoyo Comunitario y Social del Ecuador, requests several loan officers from three branch offices to each collect four borrower profiles every month. The loan officers estimate that lendwithcare adds on average just an extra 1-2 hours to their monthly work burdens – they already visit borrowers to assess the feasibility of their loan application, the only extra work associated with lendwithcare is taking photographs and preparing a narrative for the website.  By dividing extra responsibilities related to lendwithcare between several staff, there is actually only a marginal increase in administrative work.

By Dr Ajaz Ahmed Khan, Microfinance Advisor at CARE International UK

Lendwithcare microloans making big differences in Togo, West Africa

A couple of weeks ago, Ajaz (Lendwithcare's Microfinance Advisor) and I headed out to Togo and Benin in West Africa to conduct the annual evaluation of our microfinance partners. Whilst there we also met some of the entrepreneurs receiving Lendwithcare loans.

 - Nancy Thomas, Lendwithcare Executive

 

If you follow the debate on the impact of microfinance, you will be aware that one of the criticisms often put to microfinance practitioners is that microcredit only serves to support subsistence and/or unscaleable businesses. However the following two entrepreneurs I met on our recent visit to Togo showed me quite the contrary.

Meet Philippe Adanglo ...

Philippe in his workshop 

When we visited Philippe’s shop/training school on a hot and dusty day in February, it was an absolute hive of activity. In the main portion of his workshop, 15 young apprentices sat busily working away on clothes orders. Philippe currently owns six manual sewing machines (one of which he bought with a small loan funded by Lendwithcare lenders) so those who were not operating the sewing machines, assisted by tacking and preparing the material for sewing. At the side of his workshop, in an extended area, we were introduced to another 15 apprentices who were gluing, ironing and putting finishing touches to various items. 

Philippe welcomed us in with a big smile and open arms. We did not realise from his modest loan request quite how impressive his business actually was. He set-up his own tailoring business with three helpers about 14 years ago after learning the trade from his uncle and receiving a diploma as an apprentice. He now, with the help of 35 local apprentices, makes 100s of uniforms for schools and companies as well as the occasional bespoke item. And all of this on manual sewing machines! Philippe told us that he and his staff meet their current demand comfortably and he is planning on expanding operations in the near future. In fact, in the shorter term Philippe has plans to open a haberdashery next to his workshop so he can sell cloth and accessories alongside his tailoring services. 

Apart from building a successful business, what really impressed us about Philippe was the opportunity his business now provided for numerous young people from the local area through his apprenticeship programme. In total he has trained 80 people in the trade, all of whom received a diploma and graduation ceremony once they completed their apprenticeship and most of whom have gone on to set-up their own businesses. Philippe trains all of the apprentices himself and is helped by his more experienced apprentices as new people join. Philippe has now taken out a second small loan to buy more material in bulk so they can meet the growing demand of their customers and get a better price by buying in bulk.

Philippe & apprentices

And Akuwa Keke ...

Akuwa and I (Nancy)

We met Akuwa the day after we visited Philippe's tailoring shop and were very impressed by her obvious entrepreneurial skill and spirit. After her husband died ten years ago Akuwa knew she needed to find a way to adequately meet the needs of her two daughters so she started to consider different income-generating activities. She used to sell porridge from a stall on the street but this did not provide her with a sufficient or stable income so, with encouragement from her sister, Akuwa slowly started to expand and diversify her trade. She now buys a variety of goods from the port and grand market in Lome (the Togolese capital) in bulk and then sells them at retail to people in the local vicinity. These goods range from colourful cloth and children’s toys to furniture and pianos. Akuwa visits the port and sees what is being imported and which items she thinks will sell well in the area where she lives and buys these items in bulk. Akuwa told us the goods she sells come from all over the world, particularly China. 

And Akuwa's business ideas do not stop there. In addition to selling these goods, Akuwa also grinds corn to make a type of powder popularly used to make soup. She exports large bags of this corn powder via middlemen at the port to Europe and other parts of the world. Akuwa hires three people to help her with this activity since it can be a laborious task preparing the corn into the powder. The list of activities Akuwa is engaged in is extensive and before we were about to leave she also wanted us to try some of the frozen yoghurt she makes and sells on the street to passersby. She sells these for 2 cents a bag and they are delicious!

Ladies grinding corn at Akuwa's home

 
It was an absolute delight to meet both Philippe and Akuwa (and the 13 other lendwithcare entrepreneurs who welcomed us into their homes and their businesses) during our trip and although I am not suggesting these two examples represent all recipients of microcredit, I do think it extremely important we avoid viewing microcredit and all its recipients homogeneously. 

To learn more about lendwithcare entrepreneurs visit our website www.lendwithcare.org or follow us on Twitter or Facebook for latest news and discussion.

Lendwithcare in the Philippines | Stories from survivors of Typhoon Haiyan

Tracey Horner, Head of Lendwithcare, has spent the last 14 days visiting lendwithcare entrepreneurs in typhoon-affected areas of the Philippines. Below she retells the stories of just some of the entrepreneurs she met ...

Lendwithcare entrepreneur, Anecito Rivera, before Typhoon Haiyan

Two days ago I met a widow called Generosa Pantuan who has six boys aged between sixteen and thirty three, she also has five grandchildren.  Her business is selling ready to wear clothes. Her house was destroyed by the typhoon.  Her son reconstructed the shelter above her business with tin sheeting donated by an NGO, however it is was not enough to repair the house as well.  The typhoon destroyed all her stock of clothes, luckily she has been able to buy new stock on a sale or return basis.  The savings she had built up with FCCT helped her a little.

Generosa lives with one of her sons and his wife who fish and then cook and sell the fish. The fish she was cooking when we arrived is called Kitong and is one of the tastiest fish I have ever eaten. She insisted on giving me some, I pointed out that she needed it more than me but she was insistent and it would have offended her to refuse – we had the fish at dinner that night and it was delicious – this really sums up the Filipino spirit. The family fishing boat was partially destroyed by falling debris during the typhoon, they have mended part if it but don’t have the money to repair it properly, making fishing too dangerous in the boat right now.

Generosa at work before Typhoon Haiyan

Since the family house was destroyed they have converted a pig pen into a temporary shelter. I saw that there were many holes in the roof that had been patched with bits of plastic sheeting. They hope and wait for more relief.  Proper shelter is their biggest problem. They hear a rumour that they might get some galvanised iron sheeting but haven’t heard anything yet and are waiting patiently.  They did get some rice, sardines and noodles as relief supplies in the early days.

Next I met Anecito Rivera, he has four children, all boys aged between 11 – 17.  They all live here in one room house.  Anecito can only afford to send one child to school.  Although there is a government school with free tuition, you have to pay for books and uniforms and other extras which makes it unaffordable for lots of poor families.

Anecito is a fruit and vegetable vendor. He used to buy and sell in the local market but his entire stock was lost during the typhoon and he can’t afford to buy more.  Right now he is reliant on the income his wife brings in from her job at a drug store.

I had been asking everyone I met “tell me how Yolanda has affected you” and Anecito simply replied “Yolanda had a big impact on me – so badly affected I can’t explain.”  He has a small plot of land by his house where he plants crops and he had a mango tree which was bearing fruit. He told me that when he saw his mango tree was ruined by Yolanda he cried.

He has recently re-planted some crops of banana, sweet potato, and papaya. He hopes to harvest and sell these at the local market in the future.  The banana crops will take one and a half years to fruit but the others can be harvested in four months.

When I asked him how he felt about the future he said that he never loses hope and has optimism that he will be able to revive his businesses.  He will take out one of FCCT’s restoration loans soon to revitalise his business and do some repairs to his house.  Like the others he received some food aid and he also received some tarpaulin like material. 

For more updates from the Philippines stay tuned to the lendwithcare blog and our Facebook and Twitter pages.

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