Opportunities blossoming from family and children

Thin lives in a rural community a couple hour outside of Yangon, the capital city of Myanmar. She’s like many women around the world, juggling multiple roles and responsibilities in hopes that she can build a better life for her children and family. VisionFund gave her the credit she needed to grow her business and, as a result, her family is thriving financially.

Thin is 36-year-old and lives with her husband and five children ages five to fifteen years old (three children are adopted from her sister who is unable to care for them).

Before they were married, Thin's husband owned two acres of land where he managed a vegetable business. Thin Thin recommended they switch from growing produce to flowers. She said, “We decided to grow flowers because that market is more stable, there is too much price fluctuation in the vegetable business.”

In the beginning, they struggled growing flowers. Then Thin learned about VisionFund’s business loans for women from a presentation she heard in her village. The loan contained a savings element that she could use for her children’s education.

In September of 2017, Thin received her first loan of US$400 that she used to purchase fertilizer, insecticide and flower seedlings. Her flower business has rapidly expanded and she took out a second loan in March of 2018. Thin is considering hiring laborers to work on the farm so they can continue to grow the business while remaining profitable.

Thin and her family’s lives have dramatically improved from the increase in income. They want to build a new house that would provide shelter and safety from the elements, drill a borehole well that would provide clean water for the family while also irrigating the flowers along with a generator that will offer electricity.

Thin said, “I want to build a house to give my children a safe place to live now that my income is more stable than before. I will keep growing the flower business so that my children are able to fulfill their desires and be able to do whatever they want.” The hope that Thin has for a better life for her children is evident in her daughter’s ability to dream of a future where she can be anything she wants and she wants nothing more than to be a teacher.  

Thin also invests in her community -– she is the group leader of her savings group and teaches other women how to save money and invest in their future.

Continue investing in women like Thin where a single loan can spark a monumental change in the life of a woman, her family, her children and her community.