Ibu Emina, Indonesia

After losing her business, microfinance gives Ibu Emina the courage to start over.

Ibu Emina, along with her husband, son, and daughter, were living a comfortable life in Moniken, a few kilometers outside of Banda Aceh. Her husband was a sailor and her parents ran a successful warung (an open-air café offering light snacks and drinks) 100 meters from the ocean that catered to passersby and beach goers. Emina’s husband’s income, along with income from the warung, allowed the family to send the children to the local university. Unfortunately, the sea which provided a livelihood for her family for decades spelled disaster on the day the tsunami hit. Emina lost her husband, son, and daughter. She survived by fleeing into the hills behind her house. After the tsunami, Emina was forced to move into a barrack until her house could be reconstructed. During her stay, she was visited by a field officer from Yayasan Kariya Bunda Sejahtera (YKBS), a microfinance institution. Initially, the opportunity to rebuild and restart the family business seemed too great a task. However, in time and with support from several other women in the barracks, she agreed to form a group and take a $100 loan.

The loan and money from her personal savings allowed her to rebuild the warung and modestly stock it. Her sister and brother-in-law relocated to help her run the café. With a bit of time and hard work, Emina’s profits started to grow. She plans to slowly introduce new items such as cigarettes and more soft drinks that are sure favorites among beach goers. She’s also learned to decorate parasols which she plans to display and sell in her café. Emina is proud that she has restarted her family business and can employ her sister and brother-in-law, both of whom are very supportive of her efforts. Emina doesn’t know if she would have had the courage to start over without the opportunity from YKBS and urgings from her group members.