German

Loan description:

German Quito is a small-scale coffee farmer from near the small town of Palanda which is in the province of Zamora Chinchipe in southern Ecuador. He is married with five children, the younger three attend school and still live at home. As well as growing coffee he raises and sells pigs. Don German has around 30 years of exprience of farming independently. Before this he worked as an agricultural labourer on local farms saving his money until he could afford to buy his own plot of land of around one hectare. He now has around two hectares. He also has seven pigs and as recently bought five head of cattle. Initially he lived in his parents' home until they could afford to build their own house. His parents helped them economically during this time. Don German requested a loan, repayable over 18 months, to purchase animal feed in bulk and also to pay two labourers to help him clean the two hectares of coffee bushes. He estimates that his monthly income averages around $500.