Buger is about two hours outside Karatu, where another successful loan hub thrives. Neema Emanuel has received one loan and certainly made the most of it, buying and setting up a store, further nurturing her garden, and tripling her monthly income by prudently spending her 200,000 Tanzanian shillings (about $115 US.)
Before applying for the loan, she had her own garden and sold potatoes, but after receiving her loan she was able to rent a shop and build a relationship with the wholesale shop an hour away. Using her business savvy developed in the loan-training program, she is able to thrive amid healthy competition with the other shop owners. For instance, she noticed that there was a demand for luxury items, such as shoeshine. Hers is now the only shop that sells it in the area, alongside the more standard inventory of sugar, oil, and rice.
Neema has an incredibly supportive family, with two children in primary school and a husband supportive and helpful of her business. Seeing each other as business partners, he will help buy products when her inventory runs low, mans the shop when she is unable, and helps take care of family duties when Neema is busy at work.
