Programme d’Aide en Microcrédit à Vinh Hoa au début du printemps 2014
(Rapport en anglais à la fin de cet article)

Au printemps de l’année du Cheval (2014) trois représentants des 2 associations, Hope-MIFI (Hope Micro - Finance Initiative) et AVNES, sont retournés à la commune de Vĩnh Hòa (district de Chợ Lách, province de Bến Tre), afin d’allouer la 3è tranche du programme d’aide en microcrédit à 20 familles de cette commune.

Parmi celles-ci, 11 ont opté pour la culture des plantes d’ornement et la culture des arbres fruitiers qui sont les 2 principales activités économiques de la commune. Les autres ont choisi soit l’élevage de porcs soit la petite épicerie ou l’achat de machines à filer.

Les bénéficiaires de la 3è tranche du programme d’aide en microcrédit le 10/02/2014

Kiều Nga, représentante de Hope-MIFI, en train de s’adresser aux bénéficiaires de cette 3è tranche

Avec cette dernière tranche, subventionnée par l’association Hope-MiFi (Maryland – USA), au total 55 familles pauvres de la commune de Vinh Hoà ont bénéficié du programme d’aide en microcrédit d’AVNES.

Une représentante de ces familles s’est levée pour exprimer ouvertement sa joie de recevoir cette aide financière au début de la nouvelle année, au moment où elle se trouvait face à maintes difficultés pour survivre. Elle promit de faire tout son possible pour réussir afin que dans les 2 prochaines années cette aide puisse profiter à une autre famille pauvre de la commune, selon l’esprit de solidarité promue par AVNES.

Photo prise après la distribution des aides en microcrédit

Joie d’une paysanne de la commune de Vĩnh Hòa après avoir reçu l’aide en microcrédit

A la suite de l’attribution des subventions de la 3è tranche, la délégation de HOPE-MiFi et d’AVNES est allée rendre visite à certaines familles allocataires de la 2è tranche et aux 4 familles ayant reçu l’installation de production de biogaz afin de s’informer du fonctionnement de leur équipement. Ces dernières faisaient partie des 11 premières familles de Vinh Hoà à être équipées gratuitement par AVNES, au mois d’août 2012, d’un système de production de biogaz à partir du lisier de l’élevage de porcs.

Elles étaient toutes satisfaites de l’équipement du biogaz qui leur a permis d’avoir un environnement propre et d’économiser tous les mois sur les frais d’achat de combustibles (bois, charbon de bois) pour cuisiner. Pour 2 utilisateurs, le gaz produit était largement suffisant, voire en excédent, pour les besoins ménagers de leur famille. Le troisième nous a signalé qu’il va édifier un auvent pour protéger le digesteur en prévision des inondations. Quant au quatrième utilisateur, son équipement ne fonctionnait pas correctement et devrait être réparé, à cause probablement de l’obstruction d’une conduite de gaz.

Sac empli de biogaz chez Kim Hoa

Visite à la famille de Nguyễn Thị Kim Hoa du hameau de Hòa Lộc, bénéficiaire de l’installation d’un système de biogaz lors de la première tranche du programme en 2012

Lors de ce déplacement à Vinh Hoà, les représentants d’AVNES avaient aussi l’occasion de rencontrer plus de 20 éleveurs de porcs en attente d’être sélectionnés pour la ‘‘2ème tranche du programme biogaz’’ qui sera mise en place à la fin du mois de mars prochain. Cette tranche sera financée avec les fonds alloués à AVNES pour l’année 2014, par  CESR et VASF, deux ONG installées aux U.S.A.

AVNES.

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Report

2014 Micro Finance Mission in Ben Tre, Vietnam

Summary

On February 10, 2014, chi Mai Ninh and anh Nghia of AVNES and I went to xa Vinh Hoa, tinh BenTre, Vietnam to provide loans to a new group of 20 borrowers. Each borrower received $380 and agreed to pay back the loan in two years with a monthly interest rate of 0.65 %. I then visited with three families who received HOPE MiFi loans in November 2012. One family is doing well with the loan; one family encountered setbacks, and the third family is making good progress. The following is my detailed report.

Mission

HOPE MiFi’s mission is to provide working capital to women in the lowest income brackets in Vietnam and other developing countries so they can engage in income producing activities to better their life and the life of their family. HOPE MiFi is a project of HOPE for Tomorrow, a non-­‐profit 501(c)(3) charitable organization. One hundred percent of all donations are used to provide loans to impoverished women. There is no overhead or administration cost.

History

HOPE MiFi project is in its second year of operation. In November 2012, we started the 1st group of 14 borrowers in Ben Tre, Vietnam in collaboration with AVNES (Association VietNam Entraide et Solidarité), a charity organization by a group of Vietnamese French in France (www.avenes.org). AVNES has been very successful with providing microloans to impoverished families in Vietnam for income producing purposes during the past 7 years with the returning rate of over 95%. Two AVNES Board members are currently living in Vietnam and help run the project.

Report

On February 10, 2014, chi Mai Ninh and anh Nghia of AVNES and I went to xa Vinh Hoa, tinh Ben Tre, Vietnam to provide loans to a new group of 20 women borrowers (Appendix 1).

Twenty women in Xa Vinh Hoa, Ben Tre are waiting to receive the loans

I represented both HOPE MiFi and AVNES in giving encouragement to the borrowers. I explained our desire to make their lives and the life of their family better by providing each of them with a small loan of $380 for income producing activities. I described our efforts in raising funds for the loans and asked them to be conscientious in their work so they can pay back the loan in two years. The small monthly interest at 0.65% is intended to be used on activities beneficial to the village or to provide loans to other poor families in their village. HOPE MiFi and AVNES gain no benefits from the interest.

Tara addressed the borrowers about HOPE MiFi and AVNES mission

A borrower expressed her gratitude for the loan

We then called each borrower to come to the head table to sign the loan paper. I asked them about their family and their plan for the loan, and I wished them well.

Photo of all borrowers after receiving the loan from HOPE MiFi

A happy borrower ready to go home

In the afternoon, I was with chi Mai Ninh and anh Nghia when they interviewed pig-­‐raising families in Vinh Hoa for a new biogas program. AVNES has funds this year to provide $350 to each of the 20 selected families for the installation of biogas equipment in their home.

A bag full of biogas from pig manure

I then visited with 3 families who received the loan from HOPE MiFi project in November 2012.
• Chi Nguyen Kim Phung, who has done better during the past 14 months with the loan: a case of success
• Chi Nguyen thi Hien, who has encountered some set backs
• Chi Nguyen thi My who has struggled but made good progresses

1. Chi Nguyen Kim Phung went to her grandmother’s funeral so I only saw her husband and her daughter when I visited. Chi Phung and her husband used the loan to expand their business of growing ornamental plants and potted flowers. The husband was happy to show me the corner of their yard with no pots as evidence that they were able to sell their plants for Tet. His coconut tree nursery and potted plants are growing well and ready for the market. He just bought about a cubic yard of sand to make more pots for this year’s crop. His yard and his house appear well kept. He expressed appreciation for the loan and said he did not foresee any problems with repaying when it is due in November 2014.

Mr Nam, Ms. Phung's husband with their daughter and their coconut nursery

 

Ms. Phung’s potted plant business and new sand order to make more pots

2. Chi Nguyen thi Hien used 50% of the loan for her chicken raising business. Unfortunately, after a couple months, the chicken died of a disease. She continued to collect used plastic and glass jars and bottles to sell. She raised a few roosters but two of the roosters were stolen recently. Last year, her youngest son passed the entrance exam to Teacher College (Dai hoc Su Pham) in Ho Chi Minh City, but did not have the money for tuition and fees (about 2 millions VN dong or $100/month). He was granted an entrance deferral until this fall and has been working in several jobs to save money for college. She said that she has three other sons who may be able to help her with repayment of the loans if her business does make it.

Ms Hien in front of her home (left), her recycling business (center) and her coconut nursery (right)

3. Chi Nguyen thi My’s family has no land and is very poor. When the village filled in the ditch in front of her hut to expand the road a few years ago, she was able to use the area next to the road for her potted ornamentals. The loan allowed her to expand her potted plant business. When I visited her, she still had many pots of beautiful bougainvillea that she could not sell during Tet. However, she was able to sell the marigold and chrysanthemum pots. Her dilapidated hut was tilted to one side, and the roof was covered with a piece of tarp. She was sorry that there was no room inside the hut to invite me in. When I asked her why she was not qualified for the housing assistance program by the government that helps poor families to build their house, she said that because she has some income from her business, the village officials did not select her for the program. Obviously, there are other people in the village who are poorer than she is.

Ms. My and her husband in front of their dilapidated house. Her plant business is doing quite well.

I left Vinh Hoa after a long day. While it was heart breaking to see so much poverty and struggle, it was comforting to know that the small loans we provided do make a difference in improving their lives.

Our plan for next year is to raise $7,600 to start a new group of 20 borrowers in either Bao Loc or Ninh Thuan where there are large populations of mountaineers and minorities who live in dire poverty.

The $4,000 original fund for the first loan group in Vinh Hoa, Ben Tre in November 2012 will mature in November 2014. We hope to add $3,600 to this fund for a total of $7,600 for a new group of 20 new borrowers in Vinh Hoa, Ben Tre.

It is my deepest hope that some friends and donors of the HOPE MiFi project will join me in our next year mission to witness how this project is transforming people lives.

Report of the 2014 Ben Tre MiFi mission in Vietnamese language is available on the AVNES website http://www.avnes.org/vi

Tara T. VanToai.