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Ficohsa’s Mujeres Adelante – or “Women Forward” – program continues to go from strength to strength, providing more and more women with the financial products and services, and financial training and education that they and their businesses need to succeed.  Mujeres Adelante has experienced 33% annual growth in Honduras in checking account balances over the last year; 17% growth in mortgage loan balances; and even greater growth in credit lines, loans, and pensions.

Mujeres Adelante recently launched in Guatemala, enabling more professional women, entrepreneurs and heads of households there to take advantage of the same benefits as Ficohsa’s female customers in Honduras.

The CEO of Banco Ficohsa Guatemala, Juan Miró commented “We know that one of the most effective ways to contribute to the growth of the economy and the generation of opportunities is to offer access to training, financing, advice and secure markets to entrepreneurs, including female entrepreneurs.”

Earlier this year, Ficohsa reaffirmed its commitment to gender equality at a public signing of the Women’s Empowerment Principles.  Over half of Ficohsa’s 1.8 million clients are women, many of whom own and operate SMEs.  Ficohsa is striving to double its SME loan portfolio to US$910M within three years, prioritizing the growth of women-led businesses through preferential loans, insurance, and financial education.

Francis Cruz owns a shop, Comercial Francis, that sells backpacks and general merchandise in Pasaje San Miguel in Comayaguela, a city just outside of the capital Tegucigalpa.  Francis is a participant in Ficohsa’s Mujeres Adelante – or “Women Forward” – program that offers a range of financial products and services geared specifically to women, including  savings accounts, loans, insurance and pensions, as well as financial education and store discounts.

Hi Francis.  Please can you tell us about your shop, Comercial Francis, and how it started?

I own a business that sells backpacks and general merchandise.  I started out by selling from home and, little by little, I saved enough money to make a trip to Panama to purchase new items to sell.  Originally, my customers were mainly my colleagues where I worked.  Over time, I discovered a taste and passion for selling.  I rented my first shop in 1997 and, from then on, I have worked hard every day to get ahead and provide for my family.

How does the Mujeres Adelante program help you?

I use a wide range of Ficohsa’s Mujeres Adelante products to support my business.  I have both a Lempiras account and a US Dollar account.  I use a line of credit as well as loans to maintain cashflow.  I use the online banking facilities a great deal, and I also require international transfers for overseas business transactions.

With the loans and lines of credit that Ficohsa has granted me, I have invested in the purchase of merchandise and, year after year, I have been increasing my capital.  I have also acquired mortgage loans and, thanks to these, I have my own store and house.

As well as financing, how else does the Mujeres Adelante program help?

I have received personalized advice from Ficohsa employees in financial situations when I have really needed it.

What, if anything, is different about Ficohsa’s Mujeres Adelante program compared to those operated by other banks and lending institutions?

Thanks to the trust that Ficohsa has placed in me, and the financial products and services they have provided me, I have been able to achieve many goals, both in business and personally.  I am grateful to have been considered for these types of financial products, and for the financial training provided by Ficohsa.

Carlos Zavala is a vegetable grower for AGRIDAN, a business located in the city of Danlí in the south eastern Honduran department of El Paraíso.  AGRIDAN is an association of about 20 people who grow fresh produce such as bell peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet corn, and lettuce.  Through the De Mi Tierra program, the growers have access to financing for working capital and investments.

Hi Carlos.  Please tell us a little about your business.

I grow chillies, tomatoes, grains, and a range of vegetables.  It all started with a conversation between friends, and we all decided just to give it a go.  Of course, we have had our ups and downs but, by the grace of God, we are still working hard and continuing to improve our standards of living.

What does your partnership with Ficohsa entail?

I currently receive financing through Ficohsa’s De Mi Tierra or “Of My Land” program.  This has helped our growers a lot.  The funding enables us to buy the agricultural supplies that we need for production, at the time that we need them.  When we do not have enough capital to carry out necessary activities, such as fertilization or pest control, the De Mi Tierra program helps us to get around this problem.  Now I have sufficient resources at the right time to improve my production.

How has the De Mi Tierra program helped to grow your business?

There are many benefits of receiving financing through the De Mi Tierra program.  Firstly, we are able to grow crops all year round.  But we have increased productivity, yields, and quality by being able to buy the right supplies at the right time.

Before we joined the De Mi Tierra program, we had no access to financing.  It just wasn’t possible to work with other lenders because they demanded unreasonable guarantees.  So we had to struggle alone, restricted to our own capital, which was not enough to keep us productive.  In most cases, the only capital that producers have is the income from sales of the vegetable crop.  But that limits what you can do.

But with access to De Mi Tierra’s capital, we don’t face those problems, and we have achieved greater economic stability.  This has had a very positive impact not just on ourselves but for everyone involved, including our suppliers and all our families.  And by expanding yields we have created new jobs.

As well as financing, how else does the De Mi Tierra program help?

We have relied on Ficohsa’s technical support when we have needed it most.  The staff of Ficohsa’s De Mi Tierra program totally understand our whole production process, and so they are able to give the best advice.  They have also provided us with useful financial education that has further improved our economic stability.  We really appreciate the personal attention that we get.