Lendwithcare in the Philippines | Stories from survivors of Typhoon Haiyan

Tracey Horner, Head of Lendwithcare, has spent the last 14 days visiting lendwithcare entrepreneurs in typhoon-affected areas of the Philippines. Below she retells the stories of just some of the entrepreneurs she met ...

Lendwithcare entrepreneur, Anecito Rivera, before Typhoon Haiyan

Two days ago I met a widow called Generosa Pantuan who has six boys aged between sixteen and thirty three, she also has five grandchildren.  Her business is selling ready to wear clothes. Her house was destroyed by the typhoon.  Her son reconstructed the shelter above her business with tin sheeting donated by an NGO, however it is was not enough to repair the house as well.  The typhoon destroyed all her stock of clothes, luckily she has been able to buy new stock on a sale or return basis.  The savings she had built up with FCCT helped her a little.

Generosa lives with one of her sons and his wife who fish and then cook and sell the fish. The fish she was cooking when we arrived is called Kitong and is one of the tastiest fish I have ever eaten. She insisted on giving me some, I pointed out that she needed it more than me but she was insistent and it would have offended her to refuse – we had the fish at dinner that night and it was delicious – this really sums up the Filipino spirit. The family fishing boat was partially destroyed by falling debris during the typhoon, they have mended part if it but don’t have the money to repair it properly, making fishing too dangerous in the boat right now.

Generosa at work before Typhoon Haiyan

Since the family house was destroyed they have converted a pig pen into a temporary shelter. I saw that there were many holes in the roof that had been patched with bits of plastic sheeting. They hope and wait for more relief.  Proper shelter is their biggest problem. They hear a rumour that they might get some galvanised iron sheeting but haven’t heard anything yet and are waiting patiently.  They did get some rice, sardines and noodles as relief supplies in the early days.

Next I met Anecito Rivera, he has four children, all boys aged between 11 – 17.  They all live here in one room house.  Anecito can only afford to send one child to school.  Although there is a government school with free tuition, you have to pay for books and uniforms and other extras which makes it unaffordable for lots of poor families.

Anecito is a fruit and vegetable vendor. He used to buy and sell in the local market but his entire stock was lost during the typhoon and he can’t afford to buy more.  Right now he is reliant on the income his wife brings in from her job at a drug store.

I had been asking everyone I met “tell me how Yolanda has affected you” and Anecito simply replied “Yolanda had a big impact on me – so badly affected I can’t explain.”  He has a small plot of land by his house where he plants crops and he had a mango tree which was bearing fruit. He told me that when he saw his mango tree was ruined by Yolanda he cried.

He has recently re-planted some crops of banana, sweet potato, and papaya. He hopes to harvest and sell these at the local market in the future.  The banana crops will take one and a half years to fruit but the others can be harvested in four months.

When I asked him how he felt about the future he said that he never loses hope and has optimism that he will be able to revive his businesses.  He will take out one of FCCT’s restoration loans soon to revitalise his business and do some repairs to his house.  Like the others he received some food aid and he also received some tarpaulin like material. 

For more updates from the Philippines stay tuned to the lendwithcare blog and our Facebook and Twitter pages.

Make a loan to a small business owner today and help them and their families find a sustainable route out of poverty - www.lendwithcare.org  

More from Lendwithcare in the Philippines | The impact of Typhoon Haiyan

Day 12 and Tracey retells the stories of the Lendwithcare entrepreneurs she has met whilst in the Philippines ...

I had to accept that we were not going to get to Leyte or any of the other worst affected islands due to the bad weather. There has been an area of low pressure over the Philippines for the last couple of weeks which has been causing constant rain and high winds and severe flooding in some areas. 

CARE/Peter Caton

Instead we decided to travel four hours north of Cebu city to meet with one of Lendwithcare’s partners, a Co-operative called FCCT. FCCT have many branches, including two in the north of Cebu which was affected by typhoon Yolanda, as it is known here (if you say typhoon Haiyan people look at you blankly). 

Tracey's original route

First I met with the staff of FCCT who explained all the services they offer to their members, including loans. You can tell from their motto “only having savings breaks the bonds of poverty” that they strongly believe in encouraging their members to save. In fact, they even have a “kiddies savings plan” where children, from the moment they start school to when they finish year six, can save a third of any allowance they get from their parents. When these mini-savers graduate junior school they can withdraw their savings to spend on a graduation dress or new shoes. The interest rate they receive is 5% - I could only dream of finding a savings account that pays that much to my own son in a children’s account in the UK. FFCT also offer a good rate of savings to adults which they pay from the interest they charge on loans. 

Loan repayments are collected by staff every week – they go and visit the borrower to avoid them having to interrupt their business to travel to the office to make their loan repayments. Any profit FCCT makes is returned to their members at the end of the year. As well as savings and loans, FCCT offer mobile money transfer services. 

By the time I finished hearing about FCCT’s services it was the end of a very long day. We had dinner with the FCCT staff and they told me how terrifying it was to be in the middle of such a “super typhoon”. Luckily typhoon Yolanda hit during the day which meant that a lot of people had time to get to an evacuation centre (which in practice are schools or churches). They all said it was the most terrifying experience of their lives and most of the staff had experienced around 70% damage to their own homes. They told me this in a very matter of fact way. Apparently the Philippines experiences an average of 20 typhoons a year so they hadn’t realised quite how bad this one was going to be. After a night in a simple guest house, we breakfasted on the tastiest fried eggs on toast I have ever had – I wish I knew how the chef, who was a member of FCCT, had made them so delicious. We then left the FCCT office to meet some of their members who had been affected by the typhoon. 

First I met Melbina Tuico who has four children. She runs a food stall and as a side line rents DVDs to provide an additional source of income for her family. Both her business and home were completely destroyed during the typhoon. But she needs to feed her family and send kids to school so Melbina immediately moved her business next door to an area outside her sister in law’s house, which is manageable in the short-term. She said that business has been OK since the typhoon since people still come to eat. She provides breakfast lunch and dinner, her customers are neighbours but also people from other villages since she prepares such delicious BBQ food. 

When I asked her about the future she replied “only god knows my future”. She is hoping and praying that someone will help her rebuild her house and restaurant area again. Shelter is her main problem as they are now all sharing her sister in law’s house. The children keep asking when they can go back to their own home. Melbina and her family received some relief goods from humanitarian organisations working in Cebu but she has not been able to get any construction materials. She said she can’t focus on her business properly while she is worrying about whether her house will be rebuilt. I wished her good luck, not knowing quite what could be done for her in the short term. CARE and other relief agencies, who have specialised expertise in emergency shelter relief, are rightly focusing on the most vulnerable who don’t have anywhere else to go. 

However it is very likely that FCCT will offer her what they call a “rehabilitation loan”, which will be on a deferred repayment basis and at a very low interest rate. I asked them to send me details as soon as possible so that we can put it on the lendwithcare as I know our lenders will want to help. 

Stay tuned for more stories from the Philippines here and on our Facebook and Twitter pages.

Make a loan to an entrepreneur trying to build a stable future for themselves and their families today by visiting lendwithcare.org 

Day 8: "How is the Philippines coping after [Typhoon] Haiyan?"

Tracey Horner, Head of Lendwithcare, is still battling the elements in the Visayas (the Philippines) to find out more about the impact of Typhoon Haiyan on local businesses and livelihoods.

Most typhoon affected said they were just thankful they still had their loved ones. Feel inspired by their courage.
— Tracey (@traceymohabir) January 17, 2014

CARE-ACCORD distribution of household items in Ormoc

Tracey's journey that had included a visit to one of the worst affected areas of Typhoon Haiyan - Tacloban - has been less than smooth

Tried to get to most affected island ,Leyte but bad weather forced the ferry to do a u turn. Now on way to visit LWC partner in Cebu.
— Tracey (@traceymohabir) January 16, 2014

Very lucky I don't get sea sick as the abandoned ferry crossing was very rough. Unlikely to get to Tacloban, v disappointed.
— Tracey (@traceymohabir) January 16, 2014

But she has managed to meet a number of lendwithcare entrepreneurs on the island of Cebu and learnt a lot about how businesses and families have coped in the aftermath of the strongest typhoon to ever hit landfall and how our local partner, SEEDFINANCE, is helping communities get back on their feet

Post by lendwithcare.org.

Post by lendwithcare.org.

Philippines Diary - Update from the field by Tracey Horner

Update from a field visit in the Philippines by Tracey Horner, received on Tues. 14^thJan., 14:04 London time.

"I finally arrived in Manila over 24 hours after I left my house. The Manila traffic is truly appalling during rush hour, which seems to last for much of the day. It reminded me of the fab BBC Programme "Toughest place to be a...", which featured in one episode a bus driver from London living in Manila and taking over the job of a 'Jeepney' driver for a week.  Funnily enough, the security briefing I received from the CARE office said that staff are not allowed to travel in Jeepney's due to safety concerns!  I ended up commuting back to the office in what Filipinos call 'tricycles', which are like a motor bike with a side car.  These are the same vehicles that Lendwithcare is helping to fund, with loans to some drivers who want to convert their 'tricycles' to less polluting LPG gas.  More details to follow next week when I meet with the company 'Clean Engines' to discuss further funding."

Tweet from Tracey on the day she arrived:

My commute home from work was a little different today! pic.twitter.com/D8sGqY2WWL
— Tracey (@traceymohabir) January 14, 2014

"This morning, I met with the CARE Philippines office to hear about how they are helping people who were affected by Typhoon Haiyan (locally known as Yolanda).  We discussed the challenges in scaling up an operation to cope with such a devastating natural disaster. [All updates from CARE's work, including in the Philippines can be read here.] It has been an interesting discussion, it is very easy to imagine how money is needed to buy and distribute food and shelter. But there is so much more involved to ensure NGO's like CARE respond to large disasters responsibly and provide accountability to all donors. The CARE Philippines office had to be scaled up from one person to 16 in a matter of weeks. Luckily CARE has very experienced senior staff who can be deployed in such circumstances and are managing the operation. CARE Philippines has worked with a local partner, Accord, for a long time and it is through this partnership and some new partnerships with some of the microfinance co-operatives Lendwithcare works through that CARE is responding to the disaster.  I will see more on-the-ground activity when I visit the Islands on Thursday, but I am told that CARE has been and is currently distributing food, providing shelter and discussing how people's livelihoods can be re-built.

As I am typing this diary entry, the BBC world weather forecast is showing extensive flooding in the areas I will be visiting.  I hope I am still going to be able to get around and gather the information that I know our Lendwithcare lenders are asking for about the entrepreneurs they have been supporting.

In preparation for my trip I have been reading the diaryof CARE aid worker, Sandra Bulling, who was one of the first to visit Tacloban, the worst affected city after typhoon Haiyan. I wonder with trepidation what I will see when I reach Tacloban approximately nine weeks after Sandra's visit."

Latest updates:

Tracey is experiencing a bad sea condition in the Philippines, which is preventing her from reaching the worst affected area of Tacloban. A true experience of how Filipinos are at the mercy of weather every day.

Tried to get to most affected island ,Leyte but bad weather forced the ferry to do a u turn. Now on way to visit LWC partner in Cebu.
— Tracey (@traceymohabir) January 16, 2014

Very lucky I don't get sea sick as the abandoned ferry crossing was very rough. Unlikely to get to Tacloban, v disappointed.
— Tracey (@traceymohabir) January 16, 2014

Day 2 – Safely arrived in the Philippines

Day Two

Arrived safely after a 19 hour journey. Catching up with the CARE office tomorrow then meeting @lendwithcare partner next day.
— Tracey (@traceymohabir) January 13, 2014

Head of Lendwithcare, Tracey Horner, safely arrived in Manila this morning where she will stay for a couple of days and meet with CARE Philippines staff to discuss a rehabilitation plan for the people who lost their livelihoods when Typhoon Haiyan hit on November 8^th last year. One of the main questions to be addressed is how Lendwithcare, a peer-to-peer lending platform operating in devastated areas, can contribute to these rebuilding efforts.

Tomorrow, Tracey will also meet with Lendwithcare's local partner, SEEDFINANCE, the Filipino microfinance organisation that Lendwithcare has been working with to provide small loans to entrepreneurs living in the Philippines for the past to years. SEEDFINANCE will provide Tracey with an update on the 38 Lendwithcare entrepreneurs that have been adversely affected by the typhoon. As shown on the homemade map below, Tracey will travel to visit those affected in Tacloban, Ormoc, Omaganhan and Cebu, to assess what can be done to help support restoration and to hear their stories.

In the past, Lendwithcare has helped many small businesses in now-devastated areas such as the islands of Cebu or Leyte. Analiza Cangmaong is one of them; she was a greengrocer selling bananas and sweet potatoes on a market in Tuburan, Cebu, but she was making a lot of losses because her stock would rot before she could sell it. After a series of short-term loans she managed to diversify her stock and start selling dried fish and to put an end to any more waste. “Fish is more profitable. It never goes off before sale. There is no waste. […]The loans have improved our family’s life. I have been able to send my daughter to college, which I could not do before. […] Now we have been able to buy a motorcycle, which is helpful for our business, and we have bought appliances for the house. We have music now. Also our family eat better food at home”, she says.

Access to microfinance, such as small loans, has the potential to significantly improve the living standards of low income families living in poverty, and could be an important tool in the rebuilding efforts after a natural disaster; a possibility that Tracey is currently exploring in the Philippines.

Follow Tracey as she travels to meet Lendwithcare entrepreneurs on our Twitter and Facebook feeds and by following this blog.

Philippines Diary - lendwithcare in the field

As Tracey Horner, Head of Lendwithcare, travels to the Philippines post Typhoon Haiyan we follow her here ... 

DAY ONE
 

Checking-in at Heathrow Airport

Today I am going to the Philippines. And as I leave the comfort of my family and home behind, I am acutely aware of the stark contrast that awaits me as I travel to visit the families and homes of people struck by the strongest typhoon to ever hit landfall - Typhoon Haiyan (known locally as Typhoon Yolanda). I'm sure you can all remember the shock and sadness you felt as the news hit our screens in November last year that a super typhoon was smashing its way through the Philippines, destroying absolutely everything in its wake. Over the last few weeks, we ourselves have experienced the adverse affects of extreme weather and know how utterly destructive it can be and how we stand helpless in the face of it. Although the nature of my work means I have seen and heard a lot about the impact of Typhoon Haiyan over the last month or so, I have absolutely no idea what to expect and I want to share my experiences with you via this short diary.
 
My goal while away is to meet some of the 38 lendwithcare entrepreneurs living in areas devastated by Haiyan and work on a restoration plan with our local partner, SEEDFINANCE. I will be visiting the islands of Leyte and Cebu and visiting some of the worst affected areas, including Tacloban City and Ormoc City.

For news, updates and photos keep an eye on this blog and follow us on the lendwithcare Facebook page and Twitter @lendwithcare & @traceymohabir

Does faith matter? A blogpost by Dr. Ajaz Ahmed Khan

Does an association with faith encourage more prompt repayment of microloans and are the staff of faith-inspired microfinance institutions more motivated?

After recently returning from a visit to Pakistan, where I was analysing the operations of an Islamic microfinance institution, I am tempted to answer yes to both questions. The microfinance institution in question is Akhuwat, a lendwithcare partner. The organisation derives its name from the Arabic word Mwakhwaat or brotherhood and was established in 2001 by Dr Amjad Saqib. It has grown quickly to become one of the largest specialist providers of microloans in Pakistan – it now has almost two hundred thousand active clients, including many non-Muslims, served by more than 250 branches located throughout the country.

Akhuwat provides interest free, referred to as Qard Hasan, loans to the working poor. Qard Hasan loans are promoted in Islamic teachings as one of the mechanisms to assist poor people; indeed they are preferred to providing the poor with outright charity. With an average loan size the equivalent of just US$144, Akhuwat lends to some of the poorest people in Pakistan without any formal collateral and has a remarkable on-time repayment rate of 99.33%.  This can partly be explained by the fact that loans are made to small groups of friends and neighbours who appraise each other’s loans. While most of Akhuwat’s loans are to help low income people start or develop their businesses, they also provide ‘liberation’ loans to those people who have taken loans at high rates of interest from moneylenders and the debt has spiralled beyond control. The organisation repays the whole amount owing to the moneylender in the presence of the borrower and then requests the borrower to repay Akhuwat in interest free instalments.

Through speaking directly with Akhuwat’s clients in and around the city of Lahore it was noticeable how many stressed that it was precisely the fact that the loans conformed to Islamic teachings, particularly regarding the prohibition on charging or receiving interest, that most attracted them to Akhuwat and the fact that the funds may be from others fulfilling their religious obligations that motivated them to repay. Some borrowers confessed that it was the first time that they had ever received a loan from a microfinance institution – they had in the past refrained from accessing interest-based microfinance because of their religious beliefs.

No doubt borrowers were also attracted to Akhuwat’s loans because they were much cheaper than the alternatives available since borrowers paid no interest and Akhuwat’s loan officers would even visit borrowers at their homes or places of work to collect repayment instalments making their service very convenient. However, there did seem to be a genuine desire from clients to see the organisation develop and succeed. All the clients that I spoke with or observed visiting the organisation voluntarily made donations to Akhuwat - the organisation covers its operating costs through donations from borrowers and well-wishers – and the ubiquitous donation boxes in the branch offices were stuffed full with small denomination rupee notes.

It also became apparent that Akhuwat’s staff were also extremely committed and routinely worked extra hours. While this is common in many social development organisations, some had come to the institution from better paid jobs elsewhere and others had continued to work for Akhuwat for many years eschewing opportunities elsewhere. Many confessed that they were motivated by spiritual reasons and a sense of fulfilling a duty – something that I have also observed with staff working with faith-based microfinance institutions in Africa and Latin America.

I am certain that faith does have some influence on the way borrowers perceive Akhuwat and also on their behaviour and it has a motivational impact on programme staff. No doubt this has partly contributed to Akhuwat’s success but, as Dr Amjad Saqib emphasised to me, it is not a substitute for a conducive macroeconomic environment, qualified and experienced staff, and proper policies and procedures.

Loans can be given as a gift voucher to a friend or family member, who can choose which entrepreneur they would like to support. The entrepreneur uses the loan to help grow their business, and later pays the lender back. The lender can either withdraw the money and keep it, or lend the same money to another entrepreneur.

By Ajaz Ahmed Khan, Microfinance Advisor at CARE International

Best wishes for 2014 and a massive “Thank you” for your support to lendwithcare

2013 was a busy and at times a challenging year for lendwithcare. It was also a hugely successful one thanks to your continuing support. 

2013 Highlights

• Our lender community almost doubled and we reached the 15,000 lender mark just before the close of the year
• We made 60,000 loans, lending just over £2m to poor entrepreneurs across the world
• We started working in Pakistan, Zambia and Malawi
• We funded our first social enterprise loans in an effort to reduce air pollution in Metro Manila

Lendwithcare was also covered extensively in the media, including pieces in the Guardian, The Independent, The Evening Standard, The Times and the Daily Express. Click here to see them. 

However, as the situation in the Philippines reminds us, our work is by no means done. It is more important than ever to help individuals and communities rebuild their lives, especially after natural calamities such as Typhoon Haiyan.

Just before the Christmas Holidays we received news that 38 lendwithcare entrepreneurs have been adversely affected by the typhoon and so, their repayments have been paused until an appropriate rehabilitation plan has been developed.  Tracey Horner, Head of Lendwithcare, will be travelling to the Philippines in a few days to meet with our partner there and with the entrepreneurs who have been affected to help devise the plan to help them.  We will keep you informed.  

In 2014 we expect, with your ongoing support, to help more and more micro entrepreneurs to improve their lives and those of their families.