As we come closer to the end of the year and the holiday season appears on the horizon, we at Knowmad are excited to continue our annual holiday tradition of supporting small, local businesses in South America. Through Kiva, anyone can lend money to low-income entrepreneurs throughout the world, and “connect people through lending to alleviate poverty.”
Last year, we continued our small business microlending tradition in South America through Kiva and lent to Señor del Los Temblores – Poroy Group, Olga Jacqueline and Julio Miguel. Each of them needed a financial loan to help them move forward with their business and in turn support their families. We are happy to announce they are working to pay back their loans.
This year, we have chosen three new small business owners to support. Read on to learn more about Ananías, the Nevaditas Group, María Piedad, and their businesses.
Ananías To provide for his family, Ananías has a two-hectare farm. On this farm, he produces coffee for the organic and fair trade market. He has been growing coffee all his life, and he would like to continue to renew his farm and buy fertilizer so that his family’s other sources of income can cover health care expenses and improve his home.
Ananías has been a borrower through his Kiva field partner for eight years. He is grateful for the timely loans, and knows that being responsible and punctual in his loan payments have allowed him to continue to gain access to new financing.
Ananías lives in the Tabaconas department of the San Ignacio province, located in the north of Peru. He is located close the Tabaconas Namballe National Sanctuary, a protected cloud forest that is home to endangered species such as spectacled bears and tapirs.
NEVADITAS GROUPLocated in Collpani near La Paz, Bolivia, the Nevaditas Group is a communal bank. They have requested a loan so that Señora Nancy, a member of the group, can buy rice, noodles, and oil at wholesale in the capital to sell in her grocery store. Nancy learned the business on her own initiative years ago in order to support her family as a single mother of five.
Collpani is small, mountainous village in the Andes of southern Bolivia.
María Piedad is 47 years old and makes her living raising and selling small animals in San Gabriel, Ecuador. She is looking to buy more animals and feed to continue growing her business. A nice, hardworking woman, her business has allowed her to financially support her family and educate her children. María is grateful to Kiva for this opportunity.
Named a National Heritage Site for its colonial architecture, San Gabriel is located in the province of Carchi in the north of Ecuador.
*Photos and description translations provided by Kiva.
Hasta Pronto, Knowmad Adventurers!
Knowmad Adventures works closely with independent-minded travelers creating innovative trips to South America. Our specialists in Patagonia, Chile, Machu Picchu, Peru, Argentina, the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador and Antarctica are eager to collaborate and create a trip as unique and authentic as you are, and our experienced South American operations team guarantees you get an insider’s perspective, superior values, and a flawlessly operated trip.
