Funded
$666.66
Still Requires
$0.00
1 share = $18 in contribution on average
A group of 5 women have come together to build basic water and sanitation facilities for their families. All of them - Valli, Kaveri, Malathi, Kalyani, and Amaravathi - are daily wage agricultural laborers, from rural Musiri in the Tiruchirapalli district of Tamil Nadu. They labor to supplement their husbands' income so they can support their families and keep their children in public school. 36-year-old Amaravathi, seen wearing an orange saree in the picture, is the leader of the group.
Amaravathi's family of four shares a broken toilet in need of urgent renovation. When it doesn't work, they have to trek 1000 meters to the nearest public toilet or use the shrubs around their home. Due to the lack of hygiene and various related factors, they end up spending Rs.600 per month on medical expenses, which is more than half of the amount they manage to scrounge up and save. Kalyani, with her family of four, also needs to renovate her family's toilet. Valli with her family of six, and Kaveri and Malathi all share a similar plight - their homes have no toilets at all and they end up using the surrounding bushes to relieve themselves, as walking 1000 meters to the nearest toilet is hardly practical.
They together seek a loan of Rs.40,000, which they intend to repay over 18 months. Using this money, three homes will have new toilets and a water connection, and two homes will have their toilets fixed. While toilets are something most of us take for granted, this loan will make a huge difference to the lives of 5 families and their children. It will bring them a certain amount of dignity, good health, and increased savings as they will no longer fall ill so often.
Gramalaya Urban And Rural Development Initiatives (GUARDIAN), is a microfinance institution that exclusively provides micro-credit to build water and sanitation facilities around Trichy, Tamil Nadu. It provides technical support for creating low cost infrastructure of these facilities to improve rural life.