Ana Maria Alvarado

Thank you for your loan. It has been disbursed to Ana Maria Alvarado by Prisma Microfinance in Honduras. We are excited to watch this business grow. Over the next 6 - 8 months, Prisma Microfinance will be collecting repayments from this entrepreneur and posting progress updates on the Kiva website.

Ana came to meet me at the house of one of the women in her borrowing group. Ana is a single mother and sole provider of two children. She used her loan for two businesses: selling carne asada (roasted meat) and other hot food on Friday nights, and used clothing during the week. Ana also cleans houses to further supplement her income.

Ana started her food business about a year ago. There is a park in town that hosts a food fair during the weekend. On Fridays, she spends the entire day preparing the meat and sides to have it ready for the evening. Ana sells a plate of carne asada with a side of beans, cheese, and tortillas for 70 lempiras ($3.50). She sells about 25 plates a night, or 1,750 lempiras ($87.50). Her profit averages 980 lempiras ($49). About six months ago, Ana also started selling used clothing as well. She buys clothing from the outdoor market in town and sells it door-to-door in outlying towns. Ana makes about 400 lempiras ($20) in profit a week.

Ana says her loan has helped her substantially because before she didn’t have the capital to buy such large quantities of food and clothing.