Doña Myra signing for her next loan.

Adelante provides small (micro) loans (finance or credit) to poor women who live in rural Honduras.

Adelante requires no collateral from our clients, loans to the extreme poor, and maintains better than a 99.6% repayment rate.

So how is it that we can loan the very poor money and still maintain a 99% repayment rate? The answer is solidarity group lending. The concept was developed thirty years ago by the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh. Because of Adelante’s effective implementation of the Grameen solidarity group lending methodology we have been honored with the designation of being an official Grameen Replicator. Click here for more information on the Grameen Model.

Solidarity Group Loans: Character Based Lending
A solidarity group of four to six (usually five) women will jointly take out a loan. While each woman receives a pre-arranged portion of the loan to invest in her own business, it is the group that is jointly responsible for repaying the loan. That means if a client cannot meet her repayment obligation, the others must cover for her. We explain this obligation many times before the group receives its first loan and stress the importance that group members pick each other very carefully. Because the women trust each other’s character, it is known as character-based lending as opposed to traditional banks who use collateral-based lending.

Loans Increase as the Client’s Business Grows
Adelante's first loan can be as low as $50 per borrower. The women repay every two weeks. The week after making their last payment, the group is able to take out another loan. It is usually for a larger amount as the client's business will have grown and she will need more capital. Over the course of two to three years, loans can increase to several hundred dollars.

Groups of Solidarity Groups Form an Assembly
In most villages there are several solidarity groups. Four to eight groups come together to form an assembly. The assembly meets every two weeks. The purpose of the assembly meetings is for clients to show they have paid their bimonthly quota and to receive business and health education. Adelante assemblies are led by borrowers who fill the role of Assembly Chief, Vice-Chief, Treasurer, and Community Educator. Adelante credit officers also attend the assembly to help.

Star Program – Individual Loans
After a successful pilot project in 2005, Adelante now offers individual loans for clients who have been with Adelante at least two years and need a loan ranging from $1,000 - $5,000. Because the loan amount for these “star” clients is so large, it would not be fair to the solidarity group to vouch for such a large loan. Therefore, these loans are made on an individual basis. And because the client will have accrued a certain amount of assets by this time, the loan is collateralized like a traditional loan.