Program

The first selected participants already have a plot of land and a traditional wooden house on stilts, both donated by PTD. Our micro finance program aims for the next step towards independence: a stable income as to reduce their dependency on donor organizations.Currently most women have minimum and unstable or seasonal income. In order to try to make ends meet they bake cookies to sell in the local market, weave mats to sell (back) to PTD or at times one of the children brings in some money. Our program's target is to provide each of the women a higher and sustainable income by means of an investment in a private company.

Project characteristics :

• Number of women reached: 25
• Number of children involved: 93
• Over 50% of the participating women are widowers.
• Interest rate: 3%.
• Pay back schemes are tailored to each type of enterprise.
• A social worker visits each woman once a month.
• Most of the women have formed groups to work together.
• Total micro credits allocated: 1870,- euro.

Pig breeding

Bun Hon and her husband will start to breed pigs together with Mok Rum. They both want to buy two piglets, fatten them for six month and then sell them. One of them is an experienced pig breeder and the other one wants to learn from her. They expect to pay for food and possible medical expenses from existing revenues, which they generate from weaving fabrics that they sell to PTD. In six month's time, they pay back the loan for two pigs and building materials to construct a shed. The exact amount to pay back depends on the selling price of the pigs. Standing agreement is that they use at least half of the selling price to buy new pigs.

Chicken breeding

She is a widow and lives together with her children and her mother in Popealkher, Otaky, Thmorkol, a 30 minutes' drive from Battambang. She wants to breed chickens just like some other families in the village so that they can jointly build a chicken pen. She wants to invest in chicks and grow them. After that, she sells some of the hens and keeps the others to sell their eggs. It takes six months to fully grow the chicks and sell them. We thus agreed for them to start the repayment six months after they receive the loan.

Ingredients for sausage rolls

Ponh Oeurm is a hard worker. She already managed to start a business - she is selling ice cream. She has a husband, five children, and an ice cream cart. She now wants to expand and add sausage rolls to the menu with she expects to double her revenues. Meat, the main ingredient, is expensive and she uses her micro credit to buy that. The sale of sausage rolls is a cash business and she thus wants to start repaying the loan after one month already.

Trading chickens

This woman also wants to invest in chickens, not for breeding this time, but for trade. She buys the hens at the market and resells them in her village. She will work together with another widow from the same village. They plan to be the most reliable supplier of chickens in the village. They expect to start repaying their loan after two months. They will repay in monthly installments.

Selling fruits

She wants to start selling fruits, the total investment for which is 30 euros. She already owns a bicycle and she uses the loan to buy a proper basket and her first supply of fresh fruits. When her children are at school, she goes around the village on her bicycle. This way she hopes to attain a small yet sustainable income.

Chickens and eggs

This woman wants to invest in chickens. At a cost of 60 euros, she will buy baby chickens and some fully-grown ones. She uses the chicks for breeds. The hens supply her with eggs that she sells for cash.

A cow and its calves

These two women are part of a group of four families who all live together just outside of Battambang. Together they invest in a cow that feeds on the pastures surrounding their houses. The families take alternating turns of one year to take care of the cow. Their main goal is the calves this cow will deliver. They expect to have an average of one calf per year. They will keep the female calves and sell the bulls. We agreed to accept one calf as repayment for the loan.

Four families, one cow

These two women invest in a cow, together with two other families from their village Damnakluong, Vatkor near Battambang. Such a set-up has a big advantage in that it enables the women to work from home and take care of their children at the same time.