Disna is a member of the Uththamavi Agri entreprenuers society in Sri Lanka. She mobilizes the other women members and in her capacity, trains them how to plant, prune, and propagate ornamental plants. She also helps them sell their plants through plant exhibitions. Every month, the society organizes flower exhibitions so the members can sell their products and get a good income. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, she could not sell plants. She received funding support from the ARISE-Farmers program through SANASA which helped her get back on her feet. Disna hopes to further develop her flower business with the help of Uththamavi.
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Background
Mrs. Disna, a member of the Uththamavi Women Agri Entrepreneurs society operating in Kegalle, efficiently runs a cut-flower cultivation and a nursery. She started with the support of the state agri extension officer who supported to form a flower growers group in her village with 8 members. Currently, the group has 24 members. They sell their plants as individuals by participating in plant exhibitions organized by different organizations. In one of these exhibitions, Disna learned about Uththamavi agri entrepreneurs society. She recognized the many benefits in working as a group and thus she joined teh group. She also encourages other members of her village society to join.
During the pandemic, with lots of mobility restrictions, Disna lost her regular income as most organizations did not hold exhibitions and no customer could come to her nursery due to travel restrictions. She was unable to maintain her plants and her nursery and was helpless.
With access to ARISE loan she was able to maintain the plant nursery and improve her seedling stock. As she could maintain the plant nursery, with the gradual release of the restriction, when Uththamavi started organizing exhibitions and customers have started returning to her nursery, Disna has been able to regain her business.
Innovations/Good Practices
In Disna’s case, it is important to maintain the nurseries until the situation becomes normal. But without an income source, it is difficult to maintain such a nursery for a considerable period of time, unless she has savings intended for such situations.
The ARISE-Farmers program provides funding support to farmers whose livelihood was deeply affected by the pandemic. Due to her prior affiliation with Uththamavi, Disna was able to access ARISE funds. Being connected with organizations that can provide support entrepreneurs even in challenging times has been beneficial for Disna.
Despite the unfortunate consequences brought by COVID-19, Disna was able to maintain her nursery well until her sales stabilizes again, thanks to he support she received from ARISE. Even under pandemic, she was able to participate in group sales as she managed to maintain her nursery. When the restrictions were lifted, she had a good stock of plants to sell.
Impact
For Disna, achieving business sustainability has been possible with the support of her organization and the ARISE program. Despite the pandemic, she maintained her nursery which allowed her to bounce back easily once the market reopened.
Facilitating Factors
The ARISE loans have been distributed by SANASA through the Uththamavi Women Agri Entrepreneurs society, which have been highly effective in monitoring that the loans were being used for the stated purposes. And since the lending platform was already established between Uththamavi (SNFO) and the flower society and Disna was familiar with the lending process, it was easy to execute the loan without delay.
Challenges
The biggest challenge for Disna’s business was maintaining the nursery with no income source because of the decreased purchasing power of the people during the pandemic. Her sales were low, but she still had to manage to maintain the nursery.
Lending Experiences of NIAs to FOs
Since the Uththamavi Women Agri Entrepreneurs society is already an established platform, and the women members have already benefitted from Uththamavi in other ways, there is already an existing trust between the parties involved. The members do not want to compromise their relationship with their organization by lapsing in repayment.
Lessons Learned
- The delivery of loans along the plan of cultivation has been a prime requirement and has been highlighted in terms of achieving the expected results.
- The use of an existing lending platform and a product that has been tested with the selected beneficiaries also enables the execution with limited monitoring.
- Supporting the beneficiary to market their products and assisting them to access input as a bulk collectively can also enable unnecessary expenditure and stabilize the cash flow.
Recommendations
Usual loan repayment periods available for entrepreneurs are 2-3 years. However, accessing these loans in a time of crisis where the cash flow is thin in most financial institutions are reluctant to lend. ARISE loan provided these businesses to hang on until the situation normalizes. If ARISE loan can be made available at NIA for a longer tenure, the FOs and SNFOs can make a more organized cash flow recovery programme with each client.
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The Assuring Resiliency of Family Farmers amidst COVID-19 (ARISE-Farmers) aims to contribute to achieving the SDG goal of ending hunger and poverty by empowering federated farmer groups to meet the needs of their members as well as ensure the health and sufficient food supply during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. ARISE-Farmers builds on the coverage of the IFAD regional grant Asia Pacific Farmers Programme (APFP). The target group is the same as APFP with a specific focus on smallholder men and women farmers/producers needing production assistance for the immediate next cropping season within the lockdown or post lockdown. More info: https://asiapacificfarmersforum.net/
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