Tertuliana Rensini (47) is called ’Ana’ by her neighbours. She is an only child and was orphaned at the age of 16 years. She is married to Agustinus and they have six children. Two of the children are married and Ana supports the other four. Ana joined the Trust Bank program because she wanted to help her husband support their family.
Ana used her loan to develop her coconut and banana business. She was able to purchase larger quantities of stock and sell it at Oesao and Buraen markets. She does not have a stall, instead she sets up her stock under a tree. She sells coconuts and bananas from 4.30am until 11am. In the afternoon she travels to various farmers and buys more stock from them.
Since joining the Trust Bank, Ana’s daily income has risen from Rp.8,000 (A$1.13) to Rp.15,000 (A$2.13). She has so far saved Rp.47,500 (A$6.76) and wants to use the money as business capital.
Ana is a primary school graduate. Sending her older children to school was a struggle because at that time the government did not give a subsidy for education. Now she has high hopes for her younger children.
The family lives in a timber house that has a thatch roof and dirt floors. Ana would like to rebuild and replace the thatch with corrugated iron, but she wants to focus on developing her business first. The family collects water from an 18 metre deep well. They eat mainly rice, corn and vegetables.
Ana is learning communication and teamwork skills through the Trust Bank meetings. She has already grown in self-confidence and is pleased with the progress in her business.
DSBN is pleased to be involved with Opportunity International as a donor sponsor and we are excited to announce our new initiative - sponsorship of a Trust Bank in West Timor by end 2006. If you are interested in contributing to the DSBN Trust Bank, please contact us.
Empowering small business owners!
