June 2008 Articles
El Progreso by Gloria García and Cortes Tulian Rió
I got my first loan with the Fundación Adelante three months ago, and I'm very happy with it! I have a pulperia (small shop) in my home that I have been running for ten years now; with my loan from Adelante I've been able to expand my shop and sell more products. In my pulperia I sell granos basicos (basic grains), but I also sell paper products and school supplies like pencils, pens, and notebooks. My loan was for 3000 Lempiras (157 US$), and I'm halfway through paying it back - I've got six more payments left, for 3 more months. With my loan, I was able to expand my inventory by buying different products to supply; I bought glue, some school instruments, and a wider variety of the products I already stocked. I have liked watching my shop grow, and am happy to be able to supply more and different products.
I have had loans with other institutions before, and with a bank, but I like Adelante best, and I have stopped working with other groups. I started working with Adelante when a neighbor told me about the organization. They were looking for more responsible people to join their Asamblea. It's important that people are responsible and are trusted by the group, because the whole group is responsible for the loan; that means if one person misses a payment, the group has to find a way to make that payment.
As soon as I joined their Asamblea , I really liked Adelante. I like the way the organization functions, and all the help that they provide. Their loans are structured in such a way that they are manageable and easy to pay back, and the help from the Adelante credit officer goes beyond just the economic. The charlas (educational talks) are always very interesting, and help personal and business development. The charlas are helpful; for instance, sometimes you find yourself loosing business, and you can't figure out why. During the charlas and our Asamblea meetings, we talk about these kinds of things and that helps give you ideas and motivate yourself.
Today the charla was about Objectives, and it got me thinking about my own objectives and goals. I am 32 years old and have four children: three girls aged 13, 11, and 8, and one boy who is five years old. I want the best for my kids. My main goal is to be able to give all my kids education. It's the best I can give them. I hope that one day, with a good education, they will be able to become professionals. It is very challenging to send kids to school; everything is so expensive. We have to buy uniforms, shoes, school supplies; with four children, those costs can be hard to bear. My husband works wherever he can find work, and I have my pulperia , but it can still be hard to make ends meet.
Once I have finished paying off this loan, I will apply for a second loan with Adelante. I want to keep working with them. Although I haven't been with Adelante for very long, I am very happy with them and how they work, and I enjoy going to Asamblea meetings every two weeks. It's great to get out of the house and spend some time chatting with the women in my Asamblea. And even though it's only been one loan, I liked watching my pulperia grow in variety and stock. I can see that with future loans, I'll be able to grow my business even more, and provide for my family. I hope that with Adelante's support and my hard work, my kids will all get a good education and learn to provide for themselves.
Grameen International Dialogue Programme
Bangladesh is where it all began. Three decades ago, the Grameen Bank began giving small loans in an effort to support the poorest of the poor as they strove to make a better life for themselves. Last month, four staff members of the Fundación Adelante - a Grameen replicator organization - got the opportunity to travel to the birthplace of micro-finance.
Mike Wiesner, Manfredo Reyes, Sandra Amaya, and Oscar Mejia joined over 50 other participants from several different countries (including Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Columbia, Barbados, and Great Britain) in Dhaka for the Grameen International Dialogue Programme. It was a unique opportunity for some of our Honduran staff members to see and experience Bangladesh and the Grameen Bank hands-on. All staff members who participated are Directors within our organization: Mike is Director of International Development, Manfredo is our Director of Finance, Sandra is Director of Education and Oscar is Director of Operations. Manfredo, Sandra and Oscar work out of our La Ceiba office.
Sponsored by the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh and the Grameen Foundation in the United States, this International Dialogue program brings together practitioners in micro-finance so that they can learn from each other, share experiences, and witness the Grameen methodology in action.
"It was a completely unique experience in life," says Manfredo Reyes, Adelante's Director of Finance in La Ceiba. "We got to see and experience another culture, and to share with the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh, to see how they work. You learn a lot when you share with people working in micro-finance from all over the world."
One of the strengths of the program, Manfredo says, is its strong field component. In the first week of the program, the participants from the Fundación Adelante travelled to Bogra, a small town in Northern Bangladesh. They spent the week with Grameen Bank credit officers, attending lenders group meetings (the equivalent of our Asambleas ), and meeting some of the Bank's clients. The Bank's credit officers are responsible for 800-900 clients each, whom they meet with on a weekly basis. And yet the Bank is so organized, and its methodology so clear and understood, that according to Mike Wiesner, the credit officers never looked busy. With over 2,468 branches in Bangladesh, lending to 7.34 million clients, the presence of Grameen throughout the country was palpable.
During the second week of the program, the staff of Adelante joined the rest of the participants in the program back in Dhaka, at the headquarters of the Grameen Bank. The participants shared their impressions of the previous week, their experiences from their home countries, and learned more details about the Bank's methodology.
Manfredo says that the Fundación Adelante learned a great deal while on this trip. They learned about Grameen II - the latest version of the Grameen Bank - and many of these lessons they have begun putting in to practice in their operations in Honduras. Adelante is increasing the flexibility in its loan programs, to support clients that fall on hard times while trying to re-pay. We are also developing new products for our clients, in order to expand our programs and grow with our clients. Grameen II, and the Fundación Adelante, want their clients to benefit as much as possible from their loans, to support their clients as they work to make a better life for themselves and their families.
Manfredo, Mike, Sandra and Oscar had a fantastic time in Bangladesh. Although the trip brought some challenges (lost luggage and illnesses being the least of those challenges!), all the participants felt it was an enriching, productive and unforgettable experience. Hopefully, it is the clients of the Fundación Adelante that will benefit the most!
Photograph of the Month
An Asamblea, shouting the Adelante slogan, "Unidad, disiplina, trabajo, y valor!"
