Catherine Joyce Mbuthia

Catherine Wanjiru is 33 years old and is married with two children. She takes care of her nephew aged 20 who is attending the Kenya Polytechnic, a technical college located in the town centre of Nairobi, and her ageing mother who stays in their rural home in Central part of Kenya. Catherine lives in Kitengela Township.

Catherine started her business in the year 2000.This was after her elder brother loaned her Ksh. 20,000 (USD 295). She used part of the money to rent a small room for Ksh 300 (USD 4) per month. The business grew very well and she managed even to educate her younger brother and sister up to college level. As the business grew, she landed a contract in the year 2004 to run the police canteen at a place known as Kamukunji, where she has been operating to date.

The business has been very good and Catherine now wants to increase her stock for the business. She has approached three of the leading Micro finance banks in Kenya but she found that the interest rate they charge is too high; hence she felt that she couldn’t afford the loans. Catherine therefore thought it wise to come and try her luck with KIVA, hence she approached ANK for support. She is kindly requesting for a loan of USD 1200 to enable her to purchase an assortment of stock for her retail shop which serves the police within the Kamukunji Police Station. Some of the items she intends to purchase include: Sugar, cleaning detergents, cereals like maize, rice and beans. She also wants to buy maize flour, wheat flour, and cooking fat. Apart from the foodstuff, she would also like to introduce a range of cosmetics, which her customers have been asking for. She is confident that the additional stock will enable her to provide her clients with a wide range of assorted goods, which will be a welcome move. This will in turn translate into more income for her family. She intends to repay the loan over a period of 12 Months.

Subscribe