Cambodia – Kavey frees herself from the poverty that held her captive for 43 years!

Kavey, a 43-year old widow and mother of 4 children, lives in the small village of Thkol Thom in Cambodia’s Pursat Province.

Until recently, life had been a constant struggle for survival for Kavey and her family – a struggle that they had little hope of winning.

Despite Kavey’s best efforts, which included working herself to near exhaustion in the rice fields and businesses of the more fortunate people in her community, money was always in very short supply. The wages were simply too low. Food was scarce and the hunger had become chronic. Kavey’s dream of sending her children to school was simply out of the question because she was so poor.

Two years ago, however, life began to change for the better after Kavey joined a local HOPE International Development Agency self help group.

Looking back on it now, Kavey realizes that joining the self help group was the first step in her journey toward self-reliance. The group, made up of a number of local women in similar circumstances, welcomed Kavey and immediately began telling her about the methods they had learned and used to transform their lives.

Kavey’s first loan from the self help group was $50, which she used to start a small grocery shop. As the shop became more and more successful, Kavey’s ability to provide for her family and save some of her earnings every month grew as well. After repaying her first loan right on time, Kavey took out a second loan of $100 in order to increase the inventory in her grocery shop and make it even more successful!

Today, because of her own initiative and participation in the self help group, Kavey and her family have a reliable source of income. The income has enabled Kavey to expand her shop, increase her savings, put nutritious food on the table at every meal, and most importantly for Kavey, send two of her school-aged children to school!

Having conquered the poverty that had trapped her for 43 years, Kavey is confident that her family’s life will continue to improve and that her children will not be trapped by poverty as she was.