Did you know that by some estimates only 19% of Egyptian women find a job during their lifetime? However, thanks to HANDS’ donors, women in Egypt have some exciting new opportunities.

Many Egyptian women looking for employment have been able to open their own businesses with the help of small loans. This provides the capital they would not be able to obtain from a bank with their limited collateral and credit histories.

HANDS staff met recently with the beneficiary of one such microloan. Sammar is a young woman from a town in Minya, a province in Upper Egypt. Even though she never finished school, she has become a successful businesswoman.

With the help of HANDS donors, Sammar owns a small stand where she sells vegetables and fruit. She deals with wholesalers and farmers on a daily basis and receives her supply of produce from them. The first loan that Sammar took from HANDS’ local partner organization was for the equivalent $32. She has since taken and repaid several larger loans.

When we met her, Sammar was placing an order with her wholesaler on the phone. From the calm and confident smile on her face, we immediately thought of all our donors who have helped Sammar–and hundreds others like her–fulfill a dream.

Her success would not have been possible without the help of our committed partners across the US. Microloans you sponsor are helping Egyptian men and women become financially independent. 

Sammar is an inspiration to many other young women in her village. Thank you for being part of her journey!