I am Ruth Lazaro. I am 25 years old, a resident of Gilai Lumbwa Village in Longido District and a beneficiary of PWC’s Maisha Bora Programme. Under the scope of the project, PWC supported me to attend vocational training college at Mariale Vocational Training Center where I took a tailoring course for six months. I would like to express my appreciation to Engishon Microfinance Ltd for their support in starting up my business. PWCs Engishon Microfinance LTD provided me with a loan of Tshs 1,000,000 (US$ 435) that enabled me buy two sewing machines, kanga fabrics, thread and other materials necessary to set up my small tailoring business. In the beginning, I was not able to get many customers because I was very new in the market, so my turnover was also low. Now, I thank God because my customers have increased and I earn over Tshs 100,000 (USD 43) per month

Ruth Lazaro

My name is Sara Joseph Kazimoto. I am a woman entrepreneur from Mairowa Village, Ngarenaibor Ward, Longido District, Arusha, Tanzania. When I started petty business in 2000, my family had only three head of cattle and I was selling one liter of milk per day. This was not giving us enough income for our daily livelihood. As the breadwinner for a large family of 12, life was a daily struggle for me. I felt hopeless because I lacked the capital to start a good business. The coming of Engishon Microfinance to Longido was a blessing for me and my community. It gave me the opportunity to borrow capital to start my dream business of buying and selling livestock. When I heard that Engishon was providing credit to small businesses in my community with easy terms, I joined one of its solidarity groups in my village. After giving us entrepreneurial training, Engishon gave me a loan of Tanzanian Shillings 10 million, which I used to start buying and selling sheep to the slaughterhouse at Namanga. The first order I supplied was 3000 sheep. I worked hard and repaid my loan. My business has grown now and my family is happy and financially stable, thanks to the support Engishon is giving to us. I would like to encourage fellow women to become entrepreneurs taking advantage of Engishon’s assistance. They can start with any small capital. Everything starts small and grows big one day, with hard work, financial discipline and goals. Kidogo kidogo hujaza kibaba (a Swahili proverb meaning every little effort counts).

Sara Joseph Kazimoto