Author Archive
Multi-faceted Borrowers Part 2
By Abhinab Basnyat, KF 16, Nepal
Part 1 of this series is available at here
Similar to Narayan Devi, Binu is a multi-faceted entrepreneur. A previous Kiva loan helped her fund a tailoring business where she was able to employ a few other people. As a single mother, she recently moved to another part of town to be closer to her brother. Upon moving she closed her tailoring shop. The distance made it expensive and difficult to travel and manage her shop. One option would have been to start another tailoring business in her new locality. As an entrepreneur who is constantly looking out for new opportunities and has a desire to learn new skills she decided to open a small canteen.
Binu infront of her canteen
Her new residence is located close to a hospital, and after an initial survey of the area she noticed that the hospital did not have a canteen to serve the medical students, doctors and patients. Drawing from her brother’s experience in the restaurant business Binu received a loan to kickstart her small canteen. In the hour that I visited there was a steady flow of students who came for a quick snack between classes, doctors between shifts, and patients. Serving to a medical community, Binu is especially aware of the need to provide safe, tasty, hygienic snacks.
Medical student books and snacks
Binu infront of the counter
As I became more aware of Binu’s business acumen and desire to take measured risks, I inquired about her entrepreneurial drive. As a single mother, Binu is motivated, knowing that her wellbeing depends on her handwork, and her desire to provide her son with a good education. In the past even she had even ventured into growing mushrooms to sell in the local market, and explored going into the wholesale clothing business. The support of BPW-Patan and Kiva have been instrumental in providing borrowers like Binu and Narayan Devi the necessary financial resources to become a multi-faceted entrepreneur and improve their livelihoods.
Binu with her son
Although, these borrowers provided me with a first hand experience on how micro-finance impacted peoples’ lives, the nagging question in my mind had always been: how can micro-finance be scaled? For example, the purchase of a cow to sell milk provides an opportunity to generate income, but the scalability of this endeavor is limited until a second cow is purchased, and so forth. The industrious and multi-faceted entrepreneurship of Binu and Narayan Devi provided another dimension to micro-finance. There were borrowers who were actively taking measured risks and starting new micro-ventures. A single activity might not be scalable; but the desire and agility to transition and supplement one’s activity definitely yields the opportunity for greater returns.
Abhinab Basnyat is currently serving as a Kiva Fellow in Nepal with BPW-Patan. To learn more about BPW-Patan go to their Field Partner Page on the Kiva website. Check out the BPW Patan Lending Team and consider making a loan to a woman entrepreneur from Nepal.
Multi-faceted Borrowers Part 1
By Abhinab Basnyat, KF 16, Nepal
I had always been fascinated by the textbook stories in micro-finance: loans to buy cattle or to start a small tea-shop that supported income generating activities and had a tangible impact on people’s lives. When I met Kiva borrowers, Narayan Devi and Binu, and heard their stories I suddenly had the visceral confirmation that had been amiss in textbooks. Yes, micro-finance loans played an influential role to uplift livelihoods. But more importantly, it was the borrowers’ multi-faceted entrepreneurship that magnified the impact of micro-finance.
A Kiva loan helped Naryan Devi, a mother of two, buy supplies for her store, which she runs with her husband. Her small shop while profitable to repay her loans is not enough to sustain her family and send her children to school. Narayan Devi is a multi-faceted entrepreneur who is always looking to learn new skills and apply her business acumen to new opportunities.
Narayan Devi at store with her husband
Two years ago Narayan Devi took a training on making a traditional Nepal sweet – pustakari that is made up of khoa (a cheese like milk based product), peanut powder, sugar.
Narayan Devi making pustakari
She spent her spare time during the past six months experimenting and perfecting the sweet making process. For the last two months she has been producing batches enough to sell in her shop and the surrounding area. Sale of pustakaris have supplemented Narayan Devi’s income.
Packaged pustakari for sale
Unfortunately, some of the major sweet producers in the the Nepali were recently found to be producing sub-standard pustakaris. This resulted in an overall drop in demand for these sweets. In response, farmers in the upstream market have stopped converting their milk to khoa – an essential ingredient in the sweet making process. Since, Narayan Devi caters to her local market people still trust and purchase her sweets; however, she is facing difficulty in procuring the raw materials. Narayan Devi is hopeful that her small home enterprise will not be shuttered, and consumers will continue to love the traditional Nepali sweet.
As a multi-faceted entrepreneur, along with her shop and sweet making enterprise, Narayan Devi is an experienced carpet weaver. She learned this craft as a kid working during the school holidays, and occasionally takes on weaving projects for extra income.
Abhinab Basnyat is currently serving as a Kiva Fellow in Nepal with BPW-Patan. To learn more about BPW-Patan go to their Field Partner Page on the Kiva website. Check out the BPW Patan Lending Team and consider making a loan to a woman entrepreneur from Nepal.
Artisan Borrowers of BPW-Patan, Nepal
By Abhinab Basnyat, KF 16, Nepal
Kids playing on swings in Thecho village
Thecho village lies just six kilometers outside of Patan, a sub-municipality and headquarters of Lalitpur district. Thecho still has the charm of a village, albeit a rapidly changing one.
Corn being dried for planting next year
A main road under construction in Thecho
Thecho has a high concentration of the Newari artisan community. Laxmi, and Hera Devi are two female borrowers of BPW-Patan, who have been funded through Kiva in the past to support their woodcraft and artisan businesses.
Porcelain, wax, and metal materials used for deity cast
Besides metal and wooden crafts, Hera Devi has been busy making makhmali (globe amaranth) garlands with her mother for Tihar / Diwali (festival of lights). Tihar extends over five days, and on the last day – Bhai Tika, siblings exchange blessings and the makmali flower garlands. The makhmali flower signifies longevity since it colors do not fade.
Hera Devi weaving garlands with her mother
Hera Devi with her garlands
This is a seasonal undertaking for Hera Devi and she can prepare about twenty garlands in a day. She plants the flowers in her garden several months in advance to prepare for the festival demand. Once winter starts, she plans to sew sweaters as well.
Wooden stumps before carving
Laxmi carving wooden stumps
Completed carved masts
