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Poor Chicharron Vendors Expand Their Business

Written by: Grameen Foundation

Article Overview: Feliza and Margarita - Bolivia

Poor Chicharron Vendors Expand Their Business

Feliza Aticona and Margarita Cortez have been ProMujer clients since 2000. They are neighbors and both sell chicharron (pork) as street peddlers in El Alto, a Bolivian city six miles from the capital, La Paz. Feliza’s current loan is the equivalent of $200 and Margarita’s loan is twice as large. Both used the proceeds of their latest Pro Mujer loan to buy meat and corn which they sell in the local market. They have also invested past loans to buy a small kitchen where they can prepare the food they sell in the market; previously, they had to rent cooking space which ate into their slim profit margins.

Feliza and Margarita will use their next loan to stock up on supplies for Christmas when demand for their products is highest. Looking to the future, they would like to one day be able to buy affordable life insurance from Pro Mujer to give them peace of mind. ProMujer is looking into how this can be done as part of their ever-expanding range of products and services. However, they are very happy to be a part of ProMujer and find that beyond providing badly-needed loan capital, it provides them a space for them to network with other women involved in micro-entrepreneurship, and where they can exchange ideas and even socialize and relax for short periods from the grind of street peddling. As Feliza so aptly says, “We are calm here at the [weekly borrower] meetings. Sometimes things at home aren’t so calm, but we enjoy coming here to sit and talk with other clients.”

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Article Tags: affordable life insurance, bolivian city, christmas, corn, cortez, insurance, la paz, loan capital, loans, local market, looking to the future, margarita, neighbors, peace of mind, proceeds, profit margins, promujer, short periods, six miles



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