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Tau Yeu Mai Microcredit Program: Making Distant Dreams Come True

"This is such a wonderful program for poor women like myself. All of us are growing, and not just economically. Now we can raise our voices individually and collectively." Truong Thi Tuyet, a 38-year-old mother of two

By: Ngan Nguyen/Oxfam America

As Oxfam America's Southeast Asia Program coordinator, I attended an inspiring meeting of women participating in one of our microcredit projects in my home country of Vietnam.
--Ngan Nguyen. (in center)

all photos: Ngan Nguyen/Oxfam America

This wonderfully successful credit and savings program has enabled hundreds of poor women to earn income by raising pigs and chickens and by growing staple food crops. Implemented by the national Vietnam Women's Union in collaboration with its local chapters, TYM offers credit to improve family livelihoods within a broader program of community unification, learning and empowerment.

TYM's structure and procedures are strictly disciplined. Participating women organize themselves into groups of five and agree to take responsibility for repaying each other's loans should anyone default. Eight groups form a local "center" which holds weekly meetings of all its members. At the meetings, the women apply for, receive and make payments on their loans. They are also obliged to make weekly savings deposits and pay a levy of five percent of each loan amount into an emergency fund. The weekly meetings have a strong social function and provide a vehicle for women's solidarity which previously had no focus. The shared experience of TYM members offers an important platform for social exchange, enhancing commitment within entire communities to realize financial goals and providing learning opportunities.

This is the story of Truong Thi Tuyet, a 38-year-old mother of two, who describes what TYM has meant for her, her family and her community.

By: Ngan Nguyen/Oxfam America

I joined the TYM Program in August 1996. All my neighbors encouraged me to join to improve my economic situation. I bought pigs for 550,000 dong (U.S.$50); last November I sold them for 2.3 million dong (U.S.$200). Now I have three pigs. One is due to give birth soon, and I can take the other two to market next month.
Sometimes I sell my pigs to other women in my group, who sell the meat at the market. The four other women in my group are all my friends and neighbors, and we've always helped each other in difficult situations, whether it was debt, illness in the family or other problems. We often advise one another, and it is nicer to be in a group when you are participating in a new endeavor you are unsure of. For example, at our weekly meetings, someone might speak about a new income-generating project, and the five of us put our heads together and discuss whether we should participate. We debate the pros and cons. It gives us security.

My husband and children support all this because we don't have to fill out applications at the bank where they make us feel uncomfortable. TYM trusts us, and I think most women and their families prefer this method over others. Plus, there is group support, so you know you are not alone.

We start with $100. We raise pigs and buy feed for them, and while we wait three months for them to grow, we buy seeds to plant crops our families can eat. By building wealth gradually, we can earn a comfortable living.

My husband works as a laborer in Soc Son, at a fuel refinery. He gets only 10,000 dong (less than U.S.$1) per day. In a month, he may earn 100,000 dong). Very cheap! He has only Sundays off, so we see him only once a week. When he comes home, he helps me in the garden or in the rice fields, but I try to stop him from doing too much because I know how hard he works during the week.

In the past, my family endured much hardship. Often we did not have the means to earn income, but the will was definitely there. When there was not much farming to do, I would offer my labor making bricks, constructing buildings, etc. Near or far, I would go where I could make money and earn a decent living for my family. Vietnamese women are always busy. This has been true for many, many generations.

Now, I will be able to earn little by little until I am more comfortable and not feel like I always have to run to earn money. As for the children and their education - they are my priority. It is my dream to send my children to college. It is a distant dream for poor people, but we can still dream, can't we? I only hope I will have the money to do this. In Vietnamese culture it is a great honor to have educated and well-disciplined children.

By: Ngan Nguyen/Oxfam America

TYM meetings give us the opportunity to get together and discuss issues that concern us. They also help us get information we would not otherwise have. When we are working in the fields or in our homes, we do not always hear about events in the community or in other parts of the country. At the meetings, we exchange information that affects our livelihoods and learn how we can use information. We also learn about technical matters, like better ways to transplant our seedlings, deal with drought, and other issues. We sisters share stories and have fun with one another. And we like to sing!

Singing entertains us and gives us an opportunity to express ourselves before an audience which appreciates our daily struggles. We create our own songs about our lives and struggles in raising our families, our pigs, ducks, chickens and so on. When there is some mark of improvement in a woman's life, she composes songs about it. There was a time when we all had a good harvest, so we sang about how good life was that year. These songs have made us women more confident.

I have been encouraging other women to join TYM. We are now forming two new groups, and so I am trying to find women I know who need money. Some women are afraid of going to weekly meetings, making payments, etc. They think it will just add to their other responsibilities. But I tell them, if I can do all this, so can they! Without credit, how could we make a living? With a little bit to start, we can slowly rebuild our lives.

The credit officers are very genuine and I appreciate that they travel long distances to be with us. They are very committed to their work, and we are very touched by their sincerity. We don't mind that our credit officer is a man. In fact, we love it! We all want him to wed our daughters (laughs)! He is a nice, respectful young man, and very professional. We appreciate all the advice he has given us, and we are not afraid to speak in his presence. He jokes with us. But we haven't been able to get him to sing!

This is such a wonderful program for poor women like myself. All of us are growing, and not just economically. Now we can raise our voices individually and collectively. For example, I was so afraid the first time I attended a center meeting, but slowly, as all the faces became familiar to me, I started speaking up. And to my great surprise, I was elected secretary. I remember my first two times speaking in public - they were horrendous experiences! But slowly my confidence increased, and I felt comfortable speaking. Once I got used to it, they couldn't shut me up! At home, there aren't too many people to talk to because everyone is out doing something, but at meetings you have a chance to interact with others and talk, talk, talk and sing!

By: Ngan Nguyen/Oxfam America

I am so grateful for the help [of donors who make this program possible]. I find it amazing that you help us out when you don't even know us. It's all about people helping each other out. All of us help each other out when someone is ill. We also take turns fetching water. This is how we live. This is how our society has operated for a very long time. I believe this is what "tiem" ["heart" in Vietnamese, pronounced the same as "TYM"] is all about. I now know all the women in my neighborhood through the Vietnam Women's Union. TYM gives us a stronger reason to connect our hearts.

My husband likes what I am doing, and we are happy all the time. When I have more money, he will not have to go far to work, and he can take my place as head of the family. Right now, I am the manager of the family and I would love to share some of this responsibility with him.

I invite you to come back next time and see the improvements in my life and those of my family and other women in the community. You will see a better house, more room for the pigs - and a better singer!