Meaningful Loans

Those were the general feelings of nearly 30 disabled and needy people in Nhon Trach and Long Thanh districts as they received loans worth VND5 million per household from the Disabled People Support Club at Dong Nai Young Businessmen Association.

It is known that this loan-making program to help disabled people rise up in life has been kept working since 2009.

Disabled People Support Club pays a visit to and offers gifts to needy disabled people

On this occasion, Nguyen Van Tuan Em is one of 10 individuals to be made loans to by Nhon Trach district.

Tuan Em told us that a traffic accident 10 years ago took his arm and left leg away.

Currently, his family including his wife and children live on the income earned from selling lottery tickets.

Understanding Tuan Em’s hard life, his lottery ticket agent allows him to get tickets for sales first and make payment later.

I intend to use this loan to pay off all my debts and to get more tickets home so that my wife will have something for sales at home, said happily Tuan Em.

Nguyen Thi Son, grandmother of Tran Nhan Ai, aged 16 in Xom Ho hamlet, Phu Hoi commune shared the same happiness when obtaining interest-free loans.

Ai has got crippled since he was a small child. He can not bathe himself, said Son.

Both of Son’s parents are poor workers. They earn humble salaries, which are not big enough to feed four mouths. Thus, they leave Son for me, added she.

We live on our small grocery. Every day we earn less than VND50,000, continued she.

Son’s grandmother not only feeds him and helps him take medicine, but also helps him bathe, and wash himself.

Trembling with emotions, she said that she would use her loan to purchase more goods to sell for those living in her neighborhood.

Disabled people in Long Thanh get their loans

In Long Thanh district, more than 20 disabled women get loans from the loan-making club on this occasion.

Nguyen Thi Minh Loan in Phuoc Thai commune, Long Thanh district failed to hide away her happiness and emotions.

She has had a crippled left leg since she was a child. She alone lives with and raises her children with the money she earns by making clothes for those living near her home.

For the time being, other seamstresses are now using industrial sewing machines whereas she has still used the old-fashioned pedal sewing machine.

“I do want to have a new sewing machine to make my work easier but I am so poor. I don’t know how to earn enough money to get one. My mother and I earn approximately VND70,000 per day. This amount is not much enough for food. Thus, I don’t dare to think about a new sewing machine, said Loan.

“With this loan, I will get a new industrial sewing machine and some cloth to sew more things for my customers at once, said happily she.

For the general purpose of giving the disabled and the needy in our community motivation to rise up in their lives the club has made loans to 100 individuals from many parts of the province like Xuan Loc, Tan Phu, Vinh Cuu, and Cam My for three consecutive years, said Chairperson of Disabled People Support Club Vu Thi Bich Thuan.

Disabled people will get interest-free loans worth VND5 million each within one year to do business for improving their living standard. After these loans come to maturity, these individuals will be able to keep getting new loans if they need.

Through initial field trips in the districts where the club has implemented the program, households have used their loans quite effectively, and even earned profit.

This is a motivation force for us to expand the program over to the other districts, said Nhuan.

For the disabled people who are still able to work, the club makes interest-free loans to them. For those who are living a too difficult life, the club will make loans to them without asking for return.

Loans are not big, but they mean a lot. These loans not only contribute to easing spiritual and materialistic pains, but are a motivation force for each disabled person to rise  up for a better life.

Reported by Do Quyen, Translated by Duy Minh