“I love the work that I do!”

“I love the work that I do,” says Oneyda, who was able to start working when she first took out a loan of $130 in 2009. She initially walked around her rural community selling flip-flops, then began to offer a variety of clothes, and last year she took out a new loan for almost $900 that she used to buy five piglets. She smiles as she watches over what are now ten healthy pigs, and the profits from her businesses have allowed her to put a roof on her house, feed her five children, and rest easy knowing that she has some savings tucked away for emergencies. But what has been her biggest accomplishment since she became a businesswoman? “My personal development. I can talk confidently now; I’ve overcome my shyness; I’ve improved my character.” Oneyda glows with pride as she talks about how she’s grown, and she expects to continue bettering herself and improving her family’s quality of life through more hard work in the years to come.