Em Ath, Kiva.org Borrower

On a small island on the Mekong River, I visited Em Ath on a Wednesday morning. With me was Som On, a friendly credit officer working for MAXIMA, one of Kivas four partner microfinance organizations in Cambodia. As a Kiva Fellow at MAXIMA, I travel with loan officers and company employees to meet borrowers and see the impact of microfinance firsthand.

This is Ems third microfinance loan with MAXIMA, and it is for $1000. Em and her husband are in the business of buying and selling firewood. Her husband cuts the wood and Em buys his and the wood from other woodsmen to sell in the nearby Kandal province.

With past loans, Em and her husband have purchased a gasoline-fueled chainsaw for $600, which her husband uses to cut wood safely and efficiently. With the current loan, Em bought more firewood from the other villagers to sell. Em can get about $100 worth of firewood from one tree, which she gets from the Koh Dach Island and the islands and villages around it. As their business grows and scales, the Ath family can increase profit, and in turn, improve their standard of living.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• logging
• lumber
• Cambodia
• kiva
• Kiva.org
• Microcredit
• microfinance
• micro
• sustainable development
• Phnom Penh

[humanist7117]

Good luck and prosperity!!