Dear DINARI lenders,
Thank you for your support and dedication to funding loans posted by the DINARI Foundation (Dian Bhuana Lestari) in Bali, Indonesia. I spent the last 10 weeks as the Kiva Fellow working with DINARI, assisting in both the headquarter office in Denpasar, the sprawling and densely populated capital city of Bali, and in the branch office in Melaya, a small town in sparsely populated west Bali.
The differences between the two offices are tremendous: for example, the Denpasar office is in an impressive three-story office building, whereas the Melaya office has one computer with Internet access. In addition to the obvious physical differences, the two DINARI branches differ in the type of entrepreneur they serve. Clients in Denpasar are primarily small business owners (there is a sea of food stalls, repair shops, and seamstresses) or rubbish collectors. In Denpasar the clients must deal with fierce competition as their business is often one of dozens offering identical services and products on the same street. In addition, as it is a densely populated area, clients in Denpasar face the challenges of high living costs and space shortages, getting access to clean water, and safety from crime and high speed traffic.
Of the entrepreneurs I had the pleasure of meeting, however, the vast majority lived in the rural communities of western Bali. The geography, working conditions, and local economies of these communities could not have been more disparate from the narrow and crowded streets of Denpasar. The clients served by the Melaya office are almost entirely animal breeders, small goods manufacturers, or suppliers, selling basic products from a kiosk outside their home. The animal breeders work to keep their livestock healthy, and, as a result of the global rise of commodities due to the financial crisis, they pay for increasingly high feed costs. In addition, their profits are dependent on the market price for their livestock, which is subject to immense fluctuations. Due to the remoteness of their businesses, the small shop owners struggle to grow their customer base whiling staying competitive and profitable. In Melaya, the region is so sparsely populated that the field officers and I would often have to travel between 50 and 90 kilometers per day to meet clients.
DINARI’s founding creed is “to reduce poverty, stimulate small business development, and raise awareness about environmental issues.” I saw this simple, yet powerful, mission statement being implemented with great success throughout Bali. DINARI does more than provide just microloans. They seek to initiate a long-term partnership with their clients to, in the words of the DINARI CEO, “help them [the clients] make a better life.” This is done in the immediate sense by providing a monetary loan, but the true sustainable impact DINARI has on their clients’ lives happens as they are tutored about financial literacy, business knowledge, proper animal raising skills, and information about sustainable agricultural development.
During its 19-month long partnership with Kiva, and through the constant support from Kiva lenders like you, DINARI now serves 1,199 Kiva clients and has lent a total of $342,950. The symbiotic partnership between DINARI and entrepreneur builds a trusting collaboration, which often leads to a palpable improvement in the clients’ life. Take Ni Made Riniasih, a first time borrower, as an example. Prior to receiving her loan, Made Riniasih made her living by selling banana, papaya, and durian at the local market in Negara, which was an unreliable business. Since receiving her loan, however, she has started her own business of raising and selling pigs and is working toward creating a sustainable and profitable enterprise. The profit she made from selling her first pigs was reinvested into her business, and she purchased a sow so that she can breed her own pigs, thus obviating the need to purchase piglets from a middleman and becoming more self-sufficient in the process. With two incomes now contributing to household expenses, her husband feels less pressure to serve as the sole provider for their four children. In addition, they are now able to pay for the children’s school fees for their children, and, like almost every client I met in Bali, Made Riniasih and her husband are determined to ensure that their children receive a better education than they did.
As you are probably aware, DINARI staff and other Kiva Fellows will continue to visit entrepreneurs. Updates on the borrowers’ lives and progress will be sent to those Kiva lenders that contributed to making their loans. Unfortunately, due to the immense logistical and administrative task of reaching every client, it is not possible to reach every entrepreneur, even with DINARI’s incredibly dedicated and passionate team. I ask that you please remain patient, and know that DINARI is doing everything within its means to spread the stories of Kiva borrowers to the Kiva community. In the event that an update on an entrepreneur to whom you loaned was not provided, I hope you enjoyed this update on the impact DINARI has had with Kiva funds.
From DINARI, Kiva, and the communities of borrowers I had the pleasure of meeting, we thank you for your continued support, dedication, and confidence in our work. To see all current fundraising loans from DINARI, please click http://www.kiva.org/app.php?page=businesses&partner_id=82&status=fundRaising&sortBy=New+to+Old&_te=mj.
Sincerely,
Nicholas Roose
About the Field Partner
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