good.bee

Rural Development in North East Romania

20.Jan, 2012

good.bee credit targets client groups having difficult, or no access at all to the financial products and services provided by commercial banks. Much of our credit officers’ activity takes place in the local communities, side by side with our clients and their businesses. This on one hand contributes decisively to removing the cultural barriers that often make small rural entrepreneurs and farmers to avoid banks.

In Matca, Romania, vegetable farmers took out loans from good.bee credit to start their greenhouse business, increase efficiency and produce vegetables in a biological and ecological way.
The credit group was founded four years ago. Since then the villagers have built many greenhouses and the vegetable production provides income an employment. In two to three growing cycles each year they produce all sorts of vegetables: tomatoes, cucumber, salad, radishes, peppers and – outside the greenhouse – melon, corn and other crops. They farm in an ecological and biological way with hybrids from the region and the Netherlands. One of the customers, Florin Pohrib: “The loans were really beneficial for us, we invested in greenhouses and sprayers. And from year to year we have made progress. We have succeeded in doubling the production surface in recent years.” With upcoming loans they hope to double this surface again over the next few years. Vasilica Apostu: “This is a very good system. Thank you very much for the help you have given us. We have accomplished a lot with the loans we have taken out!”