Elizabeth D H – Farming (Adja-ouèrè, Benin)
Elizabeth is married and has 7 children. She is 45 years old and has received training in horticulture and farming. For nearly twenty years she has been growing vegetables such as tomato and peppers and also maize and cassava. Elizabeth sells her entire harvest at the Kpankou and Ketou markets. Elizabeth also produces red palm oil – a traditional African cooking oil now gaining attention for its phytonutrient value. She has a small domestic production unit and now employs up to 8 people to help with work in the fields as well as red palm oil production which is a complex and labor-intensive process.
The loan, to purchase additional horticultural items as well as palm nuts for production, is being provided by Association des Caisses de Financement à la Base (ACFB) through Lend With Care (an initiative of CARE International). ACFB is a non-governmental organization offering savings facilities as well as individual and group loans, mainly to women microentrepreneurs who are engaged in a range of small-scale commercial activities and agricultural and livestock production.
Elizabeth plans to use the increased income to expand the production unit, help with household expense and save for her children’s education.
