Bolivian Kiva borrowers: buying a cow, selling food, acquiring sewing machines and constructing rooms

Kiva’s Bolivian field partner IMPRO is a small non-profit organization that has been offering micro credit to the working poor in the cities of La Paz and El Alto in Bolivia since 1995.

The central office of IMPRO in La Paz, Bolivia

IMPRO has 2147 clients of whom 45% are women. IMPRO serves clients in rural areas (11%) and in the cities La Paz (65%) and El Alto (24%) in Bolivia. 43% of IMPRO’s clients live from 1 dollar or less per day. 34% of its clients live in houses made of clay, 42% of the clients live in houses made of bricks and 24% live in houses that have been finished.

Let’s meet IMPRO’s Bolivian borrowers!

Pascuala and Santos: buying a good-quality dairy cow
Pascuala is a milk producer and on market days she sells tracksuits that her husband Santos makes. She will use her loan money to increase her dairy herd, buying a good-quality dairy cow.

Pascuela and Santos requesting a loan at the office of IMPRO

Pascuala and Santos live with the father and sister of Santos and with their daughter of 8 years. Santos has studied for teacher. He would like to become a teacher, while Pascuala watches the animals at the farm. With the earned money from the extra dairy cow they will be able to pay for extra food that does not grow at their farm (such as fruits and vegetables), irregular costs (such as medicines) and for the education of their daughter. In the future they would like to buy their own house and live there with their daughter. Santos’ dream is to study more, for example medicines.

For the video of Santos showing the farm, click here.

Maria: selling food and renting small accomodations
Maria sells food in Bolivia. She also has small accommodations for field workers who travel from the rural area. Maria is expanding the accommodations. The construction is going well and with an extra loan from the field partner IMPRO she can finish the construction. Fortunately, her husband is having a good job with Coca Cola now. When Maria took the Kiva loan he was unemployed. With the two loans Maria received from IMPRO she could increment her income and was even able to travel to Argentina! Her dream is to go to Europe one day…

For the video of Maria selling food and demonstrating the construction of the accommodations, click here.

Loan officer Herland from IMPRO is interviewing Maria at her home.

Juan Carlos and Mery: buying new sewing machines
Juan Carlos works together with his wife Mery as a tailor, making sports clothes. He sends his products to be sold on the Brazilian border. This loan will be used to buy a regular sewing machine and an overlock machine to increase his production and sales. Juan Carlos lives with his wife in his in-laws’ house in the city of El Alto, Bolivia. They have a 5 years-old child.

Juan Carlos and Mery.

Maria: constructing rooms
Mery’s mother Maria used a loan for the purchase of construction material in order to construct a room for their eldest daughter. She does not have to share a room with her parents and little brothers anymore. Maria is happy that she and her husband could build this room together with two other rooms, although not completely finished yet.

Mery’s mother Maria in front of the room they built for her eldest daughter.

Friends of IMPRO
Do you like the Bolivian borrowers of IMPRO and want to be informed about them? Become ‘Friend of IMPRO’ by clicking here! Help us reach 30 members by the end of the month!