YAO Tanzania
Spotlight on Tanzania Clients: Sharifa Undi
Sharifa Undi is an Opportunity Tanzania loan recipient who runs a general store in Dar es Salaam.
Sharifa Undi is an Opportunity Tanzania client and part of the Umoja B Trust Group. She operates a small shop in the Kimara Resort neighborhood of Dar es Salaam selling cereals, cooking oil and drinks. Sharifa started her business in 2006, became an Opportunity Tanzania client in 2009 and is now on her second loan cycle. She is proud that her business has now more than doubled in size. Sharifa plans to use her second loan for working capital for her business and to invest in a sewing machine for her daughter, who recently finished vocational training and is a skilled tailor.
Sharifa is married and has six children ranging in age from 12 to 28. In the future, she hopes to earn enough to afford private secondary schools for her two youngest children, to continue to expand her business, and ultimately, her dream is to be able to support her children in their own business ventures. Sharifa says she is very grateful that she has been able to access loans from Opportunity Tanzania. To read the stories and fund the loans of more Opportunity Tanzania clients like Sharifa, visit opportunity.org/give.
Why Tanzania?
Tanzania has a population of over 40 million people. Half live in abject poverty and 60% live on less than $2 dollars a day. With less than 5% of the population having access to banking services, there is a significant demand for microfinance. By focusing on Tanzania, the Young Ambassadors for Opportunity (YAO) can help Opportunity International raise $2.7 million to start a regulated microfinance bank in one of the world’s poorest countries. YAO’s support also will contribute significantly to Opportunity’s goal of impacting 30 million people in sub-Saharan Africa by 2015.
News from Opportunity Tanzania
Opportunity Tanzania currently operates three branches in the capital Dar es Salaam, Arusha, and Moshi. The organization serves more than 6,000 active loan clients in the form of Trust Group loans, and it insures the lives of 30,000 people, including clients and their families. Opportunity’s work and expansion in Tanzania offers hope to people who have never before had access to formal financial services.
See the work firsthand:
YAO plans Insight Trips to Tanzania for supporters and members who would like to meet the clients and see firsthand the microfinance work of Opportunity Tanzania. For more information on upcoming Insight Trips, click here.
Meet AJ Renold, Multimedia YAO Reporter On the Ground in Tanzania
Hello from the YAO Multimedia Reporter in Tanzania
Since February 2010, AJ Renold has been working with Opportunity Tanzania as it transitions to a regulated, deposit-taking institution, serving as YAO’s on-the-ground, multimedia reporter for Tanzania. AJ joined Opportunity as a Research Associate intern in May 2009 following his graduation from Loyola University of Chicago, where he studied economics and international business. Pursuing his interest in microfinance, AJ became involved with YAO and traveled on a YAO Insight Trip to Tanzania and Rwanda in September 2009.
