By Betsy Ramser Jaime
Vincent Odongo is a Project Developer living in Mombasa, Kenya. His business involves supplying water throughout his community.
Working with Zidisha has allowed Vincent to expand his business as his biggest business challenge had been having enough water tanks to hold the quantity of water that he needed.
Many Zidisha entrepreneurs like Vincent are full of great ideas and have the strong execution skills to bring their dreams to fruition. The one piece that is often lacking is the funding to expand or grow.
A member of Zidisha since 2019, Vincent has raised loans from $1 all the way up to $70. Zidisha lenders have played an important role in helping Vincent to purchase additional water tanks as he shared, ‘I would like to buy more water tanks for my project. As of now I only have two tanks carrying 20,000 liters which can’t curb the shortage of water in my area. So if I can get the extra money I have to expand my project.’
In addition to purchasing water tanks, Vincent also used a $26 loan in early 2019 to buy new pipes to replace some of the older ones.
Following this loan, he took to his Zidisha discussion page on February 23, 2019, and said, ‘Since I joined Zidisha I just feel happy hopping my dreams will come true. I was almost losing hope with my project but now am having hope my life, family, and business will not remain the same. Thanks a lot, Zidisha continues with the same spirit.’
Within his community, Vincent is providing a necessary service as there is often a water shortage in the area, especially during the dry season.
Would you like to make a difference in the life of a Zidisha business owner like Vincent? Make sure to head on over to our Browse Projects page to see how other entrepreneurs are transforming their lives and communities.
Betsy is a Writer and Editor living in Florida with her husband. She has been writing with Zidisha for 5 years and loves sharing the inspiring stories of Zidisha entrepreneurs. You can connect with her on her personal website.
