Become ‘micro-entrepreneur’ from less than 2 gram of gold

At the time Thuy started raising pigs, the most valuable asset she and her husband owned was just a piece of gold from saving, and in their house, there was nothing but a bed.

Phung Thi Thuy, born in 1987, now residing in Trung village, Quang Hien commune, Lang Chanh precinct, Thanh Hoa province, and her family used to be “certified poor”. Living in a 18m2 house, their earnings were mostly from the husband’s labor of chopping bamboo.

Before the loans, Thuy’s family mostly counted on the revenue from her husband’s labor of chopping bamboo.

“In 2013, when my kid was small, I didn’t know what I could do to support my husband, to buy my kid milk and to cover my family spending. That was when a village-woman told me about the microfinance program of World Vision Vietnam, one of the most convenient loan services in the precinct”, recalled Thuy.

Since the rule of the program insisted borrowers to pay monthly interest and part of the loan, Thuy and her husband only dared to borrow an initial amount of 3 million VND to start raising pigs. She bought 3 pigs for pork and a female pig for breeding. Due to the lack of experience, it took Thuy 6 months to sell the first litter of pigs.

The second litter took only 5 months and helped Thuy manage to pay the first loan. She got another loan in order to expand the farm.

“This time I had experience, I also joined a saving group and got trained with breeding knowledge, which helped me gradually shorten the raise of each litter. The pigs grew well thanks to the right caring technique. By the end of 2014 we were no longer a poor household”, said Phung Thi Thuy.

Thuy is now raising average 6 - 7 litters a year, along with 7 female pigs which produce about 70 piglets to sell to villagers. She plans to buy another 5 female pigs by the end of this year.

“I buy corn, banana and vegetable from villagers to process food for the pigs. Without commercial powder food, I can guarantee that my pork is clean and harmful chemical free”, confirmedThuy. 

“I also change the raising method. I used to raise new litter only after selling the previous one, thus I didn’t have enough pigs and piglets to sell to the market. Now I apply continuous raising, new litter after every 2 months, therefore I have frequent products to sell”.

Thuy is a businesswoman now, her farm provides villagers with good quality pigs and piglets.

Beside raising pigs, Thuy and her husband opened a grocery store and a pharmacy to serve villagers, saving them from costly goods and traveling expenses. 

So far, after 4 loans from World Vision Vietnam Microfinance Unit with total value of 36 million VND, Thuy and her family now has the average annual income of 250 million VND, and the gross asset of 540 million VND.

Phung Thi Thuy can still recall the difficulties of the first days: “When I tried to raise pigs with new method, many cousins and relatives expressed their concerns toward my ‘recklessness’. They said I would become poorer if I failed”.

The risk is real when Thuy’s family reside in a hollow and easily flooded land, which is challenging for building and expanding the shelters. They also have to plan the evacuation of the pigs in case of floods. The weather has also become more and complicated recently, with hotter summers and colder winters. Thuy actually have to cover pig shelters more carefully in the winter.

But looking at the achievement today, she is filled with excitement: “I know my business is still modest compared to many others, but I am a businesswoman. I am proud to be called a micro-entrepreneur”.