30.4.09
April Expansion
The month of April was a busy month for us. We were able to complete the addition of 8 more Village Banks in Phrao and Chomtong. An addition 24 villages are in the process of being set up. We are excited to be adding Mae Chaem and Mae Wang areas to our collection. The following are some photos taken during a variety of workshops during this past month....
A Village in Mae Wang listens to an Introduction Workshop on Village Banking
A Women's Group in Mae Wang discusses the benefits of establishing their own Village Bank.
A Village in Mae Wang listens to an Introduction Workshop on Village Banking
A Women's Group in Mae Wang discusses the benefits of establishing their own Village Bank.
A group in Chomtong submit their loan request to Common Interest staff and then pose for a photo.
30.3.09
March Growth
March has been a very busy month for the staff at Common Interest. We have added several new staff and interns to our mix. In addition to training them, we have been busy conducting workshops and organizing new Village Banks in the Chiang Mai area. We did not disburse any new loans this month but we expect to disburse 3 new loans on April 3rd. Currently, we have 19 villages that are being organized and many more expected to start the process in mid-April. Please keep checking our website for updates as these new villages complete their training sessions.
2.3.09
New Villages in February
February was a busy month for us. A total of 9 new village banks were established with several others midway. Here are are a few photos from our new villages in the Chomtong Area:
27.1.09
Final 2 Test Groups
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January marked the final month in our Village Bank testing phase. The final two groups have repaid their loans. Both villages requested a second loan as growing season is nearly starting. Picture above is Baan Tung Gu at their loan disbursement meeting (January 27, 2009). 16.1.09
Same Same... But Different
One of the interesting things about Thailand is that village names are not unique. If you travel around enough, you will realize that names seem to repeat every 20-30km. This is now the case with our Village Banks. We are now proud to announce that we have two villages from the Mae Taeng area with the name Baan Pa Jy. Our newest Baan Pa Jy has 17 members. On Dec 15th, the group received additional funds from Common Interest which they immediately disbursed to their members for income-generating projects. The video above shows this process.
The process is as follows:
1. Common Interest Field Staff check the ID of the individual member.
2. A Village Bank Board member records the loan in the group's loan book
3. A Village Bank Board member records the loan in the individual member's passbook and counts the money.
4. Finally, the individual borrower counts and receives the money.
1. Common Interest Field Staff check the ID of the individual member.
2. A Village Bank Board member records the loan in the group's loan book
3. A Village Bank Board member records the loan in the individual member's passbook and counts the money.
4. Finally, the individual borrower counts and receives the money.
