Raising livestock and a family, a loan meant the difference for Martha

March 30, 2020

By: Rachel Phandinh

For Martha Magali, a mother from Peru, being able to buy a cow could mean the difference between her and a better life.

From a young age, Martha learned all the necessary skills and knowledge needed for raising livestock from her parents. In order to provide for her family, Martha is a farmer with a specialty in raising and selling a unique breed of sheep. Everything she does, she does for her children. Although her business is successful, she wanted to speed up her earnings in order to get her children ahead.

Thanks to a loan from Kiva, she can increase her source of income and thus break the cycle of financial inaccessibility. Martha was able to get in contact with our Field Partner, Fondesurco, an organization that reaches out to and works with extremely rural communities. She already had the resources to raise livestock on her farm so, with her loan, she bought herself a cow to consistently produce and sell its milk.

Kiva and Fondesurco’s help has enabled Martha to create additional income for her household and allow her kids to receive a better education.

Martha believes that if it weren’t for this opportunity, it would have taken her many years to reach this level of success. More importantly, it would have hindered the process of being able to give her kids the opportunity to focus on school instead of helping her on the farm.

Further down the line, Martha dreams of making improvements on her house in the future, so that her family can live comfortably.

Make an impact on lives like Martha and her family by making a loan to others in South America.