Many families living in poverty have no access to financial services, including a bank account or the option of applying for a bank loan. Our microfinance partners offer small loans to families who can’t access financial services. Often these families live in remote and rural communities.

Manti, a mother of six girls in rural India, is one of the millions of women Opportunity supports with a small loan. Manti and her family struggle to make ends meet. Her husband is a labourer, but his earnings aren’t enough to cover their expenses.

There is often only enough money for one meal a day for the family of eight. Some nights, Manti is forced to send her children to bed with only a cup of water to fill their empty stomachs. Their home is small with an outdoor kitchen and water pump. They don’t have a bathroom and the girls use a nearby field as a toilet, which can be dangerous at night time.

One of their daughters, six-year-old Mohan, was born with a tumour on her eye. Manti worries about her future as they simply cannot afford medical treatment or surgery to help her.

But Manti and her family are slowly turning things around. With a small loan from one of Opportunity’s microfinance partners in India, Manti was able to start a farming business, growing vegetables and selling goat’s milk. She hopes to expand her business in the future and help give her children a better future.

“I want to give my children a better life,” said Manti. “I don’t want them to live the life and face the problems I did.”

Watch Manti’s story below: 

 

Read more of Manti's story and listen to an interview on Hope 103.2 Radio with Nicole Clements, National Marketing and Communications Manager at Opportunity.

To help us reach more families like Manti's through small loans, health programs, education and women's safety initiatives, please consider giving to our 2023 End of Financial Year Appeal.