Working together on
microfinance and microinsurance
microfinance and microinsurance
Kimsuor is married and has two children, a six-year-old son and a ten-year-old daughter. His wife takes care of the children and helps him for a number of hours every day on the field, where she takes care of the mint plants. Kimsuor and his cousin took out a second group loan through LOLC. This is an MFI in which BRS Microfinance Coop invests. The first loan was taken out three years ago. They needed this loan so that they could buy the mint plants that are now growing on the field that Kimsuor’s wife had inherited from her parents a number of years earlier.
They took out the second loan last year to install an irrigation system. Thanks to this system, Kimsuor and his wife can save a few hours every day. They can now enjoy spending that saved time with their children. This saving of time enabled Kimsuor to work as a taxi driver in addition to working on the field. A job that gives him great satisfaction.
Kimsuor’s cousin not only grows mint plants in her field, but also buys them from Kimsuor and other farmers and then sells them in the local markets.
The first harvest of the most recently planted mint plants occurs after about 35 days. The second, third and fourth harvests take place after sixty days. After the fourth harvest, new mint plants must be planted. The mint farmers do this by making cuttings of the plants, i.e. increasing the number of plants by inserting cuttings from them into the soil. Each harvest generates a yield of about 1000 kg of mint plants. Mint farmers earn about KHR 4,000 to 5,000 (USD 1 to 1.20) per kg, which amounts to USD 900 to 1,000 every one to two months. For Kimsuor, this is enough to support his family and be happy.
