Once Upon a Time, in a Peublo Far, Far Away

...There lived a young woman who had a dream. Her name was Ariadna Elisa Vasquez Torres and she lived in a village of 6,000 people, called Diaz Ordaz, in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. She had a husband and a beautiful, little two year old daughter, who didn't really know what her dreams were yet, but that is for another story...

Ariadna runs an abarrote, or general store. She was able to start her business with a microfinance, zero interest loan, provided by the non-profit organization, En Via. This organization was started as a project in 2008 and has since then provided over 1500 small business loans to over 260 women, in five different communities. En Via also provides opportunities to tourists to be involved first hand in "socially responsible tourism". Thus, the money we pay, goes to fund the loans, education and small administrative fees.

One of the key goals of the organization is to provide affordable credit to women who have the drive and talent to start a small business, just not the access to affordable credit. The organization loans only to women, as it has been statistically shown, says Mickey, an En Via volunteer, that "women invest in their family, thus investing in the community".

The businesses vary, from Ariadna's general store, to small chicken farms, to the old art of weaving traditional tapetes (rugs) and so on. In order to secure the initial loan, the women must first do a presentation about their business. They then receive 1300 pesos ($130 USD) to purchase the raw materials or supplies needed for their business. In Ariadna's case, she would use this money to purchase merchandise to sell.  The women pay back the first loan over a few weeks time and then can apply for a larger loan, i.e. 2000 - 3000 pesos, ($200 - $300 USD). They use this money to grow their business by purchasing even more raw materials. At the time the first loan is acquired, the women must also take a total of six business courses, provided by En Via. The payback success rate is 99 percent!

Ariadna's abarrote is open every day from 7am - 11pm at night. She is expanding her business by crafting little woven purses to sell, to pass the time at the store. When our group was there, a little boy came in to buy a couple of eggs and some cooking oil. Oh, the days of old, when you could send your kids to the store and not worry....yet, I digress. I asked Ariadna what her hopes were for her daughter and she replied that she wanted her to study so she could have more opportunities in life.

It was inspiring and moving meeting Ariadna and the other women.  The 600 pesos I paid to go on the tour ($60USD) was well worth it as it gave me the opportunity to see first hand the good work of En Via, an organization that helps so many women establish a good livelihood for themselves and their families.