The project

Fatima's shop provides food for her village. She offers many local products like rice, papaya, and fresh fish. She's an entrepreneurial woman; besides her shop, she also owns a plantation. With a loan from SPBD Samoa and the income from her shop, she is saving to expand her plantation. She plans to grow taro, which will not only increase her family's income but also contribute to food security and job creation in her community. Your support for Fatima aids her business and strengthens the local ecosystem of food production and distribution.

Through SPBD Samoa, female entrepreneurs like Fatima gain access to group loans. The women meet weekly to save, which strengthens their bond and support within the community. Thanks to your investment, 52 women receive a loan through SPBD Samoa.

What social return could your investment make?

Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) are critical for economic growth, particularly in countries like Samoa, where 25% of families live below the poverty line of US$2 per day. 

Microentrepreneurs and SMEs are often the backbone of local economies, generating employment and fostering innovation. However, their potential remains largely unused due to limited access to funding and business guidance. For women entrepreneurs, the challenges are compounded by gender-related obstacles such as social bias, lack of collateral due to property rights issues, and limited access to financial education. 

This is where SPBD Samoa steps in. The financial institution aims to specifically fund and support 52 female-led Micro-entrepreneurs and SMEs through a well-structured loan program. Loans are repayable in 52 weekly instalments, and borrowers also benefit from weekly guidance sessions with SPBD’s field officers, who help refine business strategies and troubleshoot issues in real-time. Your investment in SPBD Samoa is an investment in sustainable community development.

 

What financial return could your investment generate? 

• Annual interest rate of 5,75%
• The maturity of the loan is 24 months
• There will be a repayment of your investment in equal instalments every six months, including the interest
• With an investment of 1.000 euros, your expected repayment would be 1.072 euros

The story of SPBD Samoa

In a region like the South Pacific, where most of the seven million inhabitants live in rural villages and face limited access to traditional banking, the need for financial inclusion is acute. American social entrepreneur Gregory Casagrande founded the South Pacific Business Development (SPBD) in Samoa in 2000 to address this gap. The initiative has since expanded to Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu, and the Solomon Islands, focusing on poverty alleviation through women-led micro-enterprises. 

You can invest in the Samoa and Tonga entities via Lendahand. These entities operate independently.

In Samoa specifically, SPBD has made significant progress. Since its establishment, the organization has disbursed 117,000 loans totaling USD $100 million and achieved financial stability by 2007. SPBD Samoa offers a diverse range of loan types, from microenterprise loans, SME loans to higher education loans, all aimed at empowering women and promoting economic growth.

SPBD Samoa in numbers

• SPBD Microfinance Network  consists of 5 individual legal entities, of which SPBD Samoa is one
• Founded in 2000 
• 29 employees
• Disbursed 117,000 loans for a total of USD$100 million since its establishment