News and Commentary

Nine Days Following Microfinance in Peru

Editor’s note: Seattle-based Global Partnerships just led a group of travelers on a nine-day trip to Peru to see microfinance programs in action. What did they learn? A lot–including why you have to have strong lungs to be a FONDESURCO loan officer and the importance of communal meals for communal banks. Read trip leader Chris Megargee’s full travelogue on the Global Partnerships site; key excerpts are below.

“Arariwa [a microfinance organization in the Cusco area] serves 78% women using a communal banking methodology. They pride themselves on serving zones where no other MFI is working and providing small loans to people in poverty (average loan size is $400).”

“Although the members of [Aririwa’s] communal bank are just beginning their businesses and they live with very few resources in comparison to what we are accustomed to in the U.S., as the communal bank meeting drew to a close, heaping plates of fish, potatoes and salad were brought in and served to all of us. As we ate alongside the bank members, we learned that sharing a meal together is a regular part of the bank meetings–revealing the social ties and friendships that being an Arariwa client helps to deepen.”

“Silveria Champi Choque works with her husband, Hernan, raising livestock and farming to support their family. Silveria spoke only Quechua, so our conversation was double translated—from Quechua to Spanish to English. She primarily uses her loans to buy feed for her 12 head of cattle, fattening them up for selling. Married for 27 years, she and her husband use the profits from their farming to educate their children. They were very clear that education is their top priority, as they want all their children to become professionals rather than living the harsh life that farming often is for Peruvian campesinos.”

“Ninety-six percent of FONDESURCO clients are in rural areas. And in recruiting loan officers to work for the organization, physical stamina and good health are necessary credentials. Why? Because FONDESURCO’s loan officers have to walk long distances, at high altitudes and across rocky terrain, to reach their clients. Even dirt bikes can’t reach the places they need to go.”

“[FONDESURCO client] Jesús and his wife, Eufemia, have about two-and-a-half acres of land on which they grow potatoes, beans, corn and wheat. They also have two bulls and one cow. Loans from FONDESURCO have helped the family buy the seeds and fertilizer needed to increase their harvest–as well as the cattle that bring income from milk, meat, and farming help (pulling plows). It was truly moving to see the pride that Jesús takes in his land and the care he gives to his beloved cattle.”

Read the full travelogue here.

© 2009 SeaMo: Connecting the Microfinance Community.