PHOTO: Martha Pierre Encarnacion .

Martha Pierre Encarnacion

Monte Coca,
San Pedro de Macoris.

For five years, Martha has been running her business of preparing chicken, cooked plantains, fried potatoes and selling fresh fruit. She received her first loan of 5,000 Dominican pesos (about $130 USD) to invest full-time in her small restaurant.

Before acquiring loans from Esperanza, she would open her fritura only on the weekends. During the week she had to travel to the capital, Santo Domingo, approximately an hour and a half away from Monte Coca, to find work cleaning houses.

PHOTO: Raul Jimenez.

Raul Jimenez

Las Galeras,
Samana.

Raul Jimenez lives in the small community of Las Galeras, in the Dominican Republic. Unfortunately, like many people in his community he was having difficulty maintaining his home and business.

Raul owns a small Colmado (convenience store). He makes his living selling bread and other food products in his community. Sadly, Raul was in a slump only selling $800 pesos per day, which is about $21, US dollars. To make matters worse, Raul was receiving loans from loan sharks charging extremely high interest rates. The economical restraint from these loan sharks and his limited supplies left him in a tight spot. He knew that if he was to maintain a fit living he needed to make a change.