Visith, 27, was away tending his fields the day we visited. His wife, Sopheap, and her mother graciously welcomed us in to their home. Their home is on Koh Dach, the largest of the three islands in the Mekong outside of Phnom Penh. We sat in the open living/ work space on the ground floor, underneath the raised wooden home above as we asked about the impacts of the loan. Sopheap, age 23, and her mother, 67, are both weavers. As is typical on their island, mother taught daughter to weave as a young girl after school. More recently, Sopheap has taught Visith how to weave too and he now helps during the off-season from farming. They have one daughter, age 2.
Visith's loan of $500 is being repaid on schedule as of December. This is the first time he has taken out a loan through Maxima Mikroheranhvatho Co., Ltd. here in Cambodia. This new loan, funded through Kiva, has enabled them to pay for the preparation of their fields and papaya seeds. The bulk of the loan, though, was used to purchase materials for weaving. They weave with both silk and cotton and sell each piece to the local buyer for $5 and $10 each respectively. The women complained that profits are down now, from $9-12, as the buyer says he's had to decrease his sales price too to compete with the other middlemen. They wish that they had some leverage, but for now they hope that prices will increase again. In the meantime, farming is helping them to supplement the family's total income.
The women explained that it's currently the season for planting papaya and showed us the remaining transplants which Visith has left to do. They rent this land and pay with trade of ripe papaya. It will be 6 months to 1 years' time before they can begin picking the papaya for profit. They have two different middlemen they work with who come to the ferry stop to buy, saving them the hassle of transport in to Phnom Penh.
When asked what their hopes are for the future, Sopheap responded that she wants to provide well for her daughter (and possible future children) and give her a good education. Her mother answered with the memory of times that were not so good in her country - she simply hopes to have enough food to eat every day. (Photo: Sopheap and mother)
MAXIMA Mikroheranhvatho Co., Ltd.
Posted by Tami Rowan from Muk Kampoul district, Cambodia
Dec 16, 2007
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