| MICROFINANCE |
Participatory Rural Appraisal report SCC together with The Dariu Foundation has been running a Microfinance programme in Dong Nai for the past three years. The aim of the project is to help poor women with young children to escape from poverty by lending them some money to invest in income – generating activities. After three years of lending money how well has the project worked? We asked Dr Thong of the Faculty of Economics at Nong Lam University to conduct an evaluation. He and his team spent two weeks in the field interviewing more than 200 of the longest serving members and using a technique known as Participatory Rural Appraisal to generate both quantitative and qualitative data. The survey found that incomes had increased and consumption too. Members had more stable income and a greater diversity of income sources than before. They were better able to educate their children (a significant result for us). Further more, many women had escaped the clutches of village loan sharks who charge exorbitant rates of interest and the team found that women spent less time laboring in the field and more time at home with their children. Our members are organized into small group which are collectively responsible for repaying the loans and this explains the near 100% repayment rate that Dr. Thong found among members. The report was highly positive and gives us great encouragement. Please find to attach this report for your regards. Final
PRA report
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