Purchase of a cow to increase milk production

Sarah

Eldoret, Kenya

66% repaid

Entrepreneur

Name

Sarah

Member since

April 2014

On-time repayments

236 installments  •  29%

About Me

l was born in 1981 and l am the last born among 8 children, four boys and four girls. My birth place is Kipkaren Salient Location in Nandi North County.
l went to Laboret AIC Girls Boarding Primary School then proceeded to Gusii Highlights’ High School for my secondary education.
l am in college studying counseling psychology .I decided to do this after I became a victim of depression when my loving father died in 2007.I was my father’s baby and never lacked anything I wanted. I remember the happy moments I had when my father was still alive. My problems started immediately after his death. I went through hell as no one seemed to care about me except my loving mother. A counselor helped me out of this situation and so I would like to help other girls /single mothers in similar situations within my community.
I live with my aging widowed mother who supports me with my two kids. We depend on her for all our financial needs. In this hard economic times, the money she earns from the maize garden and the few dairy cattle is not enough for all of us. This scenario made me decide to start dairy farming as well as poultry keeping. My mother gave me a dairy cow to jump start me in my farming business. I have since manage to buy one more cow and 60 layers.
I use the earnings from my farm produce to meet my financial obligation though it’s still far much less than my requirements. My first born son is in high school and his sister in grade one and with me in college the fees required is huge. I have also employed a helper on the farm. The budget is big hence the need to expand the business.
A part from counseling the girls and single mothers in my community, I like listening to gospel music and reading inspirational books. I also go to church and participate in various church activities. However I believe that a will be of big help to my peers after graduating at the end of this year, God willing. I intent to form an organization that would articulate on issues affecting the rights of single mothers.
My big dream is to own a piece of land where a would settle with my kids. I can only achieve this by doubling my income from my business. Will be able to meet all my financial needs and even have some savings towards the purchase of land.
I want to shame my selfish brothers who, even after taking away the piece of land that my late father had given to me, disowned me. Right now the big worry that gives me sleepless nights is if my aging mother dies. Where would my kids and I live since its obvious my brothers would not want me on the family piece of land. Anyone who supports me achieve my big dream will be my hero/heroin. I leave this to God.

My Business

My business is Farm based on the family’s land as l do not own any. My mother donated a dairy cow to start me off and now l have two after l managed to buy another one from the profits l made.
l make some good profit from my two cows since the milk is purchased by Brooke Side Company and collected on daily basis. The company is very reliable in service delivery which ensures farmers that their milk will never get spoilt.
From my two cows l get 30 liters of milk on average per day so in one month l get 900 liters. Brooke Side buy my milk @ 30 Kenya shilling per liter.
Apart from the dairy cows l have also introduced layers .l have 60 day old chicks that are now four weeks old and will start laying in the next two weeks. The high demand for eggs in Eldoret town informed my decision to keep the layers.
INCOME GENERATION FROM THE COWS
30 liters per day x 30 days =900x 30 shilling per liter=27000/=($300)
EXPENDITURE
Dairy meal=2 bags @4000/=
Spray twice a month @ 400/=
De-worming once a month @ 400/=
Vaccines @1000/=
Transport @2000/=
Herds Boy @2000/=
Miscellaneous @1000/=
Total 10800/=($120)
Profit =$180
EXPECTED INCOME FROM THE LAYERS
2 trays of eggs per day @ 450/= per each=900/= x 30 days =27000/=
EXPENDITURE
Layers mash 2 bags a month @ 4000/=
Vaccines @1000/= 1000/=
Heating system (Kerosene)@ 2000/= a month
Transport 2000/=
Miscellaneous 1000/=
Total 10000/= ($111)
Profit $180+$111=$291 per month
The risks involved in this business include epidemic out breaks, theft eggs breakages and lack of transport during wet seasons.

Loan Proposal

l will buy another cow at the cost of $390 and use the balance $56 for feeds and veterinary services.l need anther Fresian cow which is high in milk production as compared to jersey.lt will add 20 liters of milk per day and this will boost the production by my other three cows.
There is a possibility of Brook side to improve the price of milk per litre from $4 to $4.5 and this will be a big boost to my income.
l am also shopping for a good herds boy who will assist me with the now increasing work on my farm.l can now clearly see myself buying a piece of land sooner than l had anticipated

Feedback

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Loan Info

Project Type

Classic Loan

Disbursed amount

$469.00

Date disbursed

Sep 22, 2014

Repayment status

Late

Projected term

53 months

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  • Sarah    Mar 1, 2019

    Hii my lenders am sorry for not communicating for long its because of my health problems that i am going trough right now i have been unwell for the last two months.
    I have received many massages of your debt and the point that you want to take my name to CRB. I wouldn't wish to be taken there my wish is to complete my loan which i am still hopping to do so.My financial position is very low at the moment because i dont have any source of income and to speak the truth i will try my best to accomplish my payment.I request you to be patient with me for a while because my health does not allow me to do anything now but if you cant be patient with me just do what you decide am not in a position to pay anything now,because i dont have it.When i recover fully i will look for money to pay my loan that is my wish God bless you as you consider my request pray for me thank you all.

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  • Sarah    Dec 10, 2018

    Morning I wish to reduce my payment due to unavoidable circumstances for this month.I want to go for my check up and also to clear fee arrears for my son in university because they will be closing on 20th of this month so my income is very minimal but a will try my best to clear the remaining balance with time please consider my request be blessed and thank you.

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  • Sarah    Nov 12, 2018

    Hi my lenders,i am requesting to adjust my installments since it has been long. I have been going through a lot of problems lately. i would like to pay in amount of sh.5100 every week until i complete arrears.The reason as to why have not been able to continue with my payment, i was paying my son's school fees, who is in university and again, since i had an accident,i have been having financial problem. My projects collapsed because i was very ill and i used a lot of money for my medication. I have now changed my installation from 200 to 5100 in order for me to clear my arrears.please accept my request and give me time. Thank you

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  • Sarah    Feb 1, 2016

    Happy new year to all my lenders am sorry for being quiet for sometime its because of unavoidable circumstances that i am going through a will try my best to clear my loan thank you for being patient with me. My health has not been that god due to the accident may God bless you all and pray for me and my kids am going trough a hard time of my life at the moment thank you all.

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  • Sarah    Oct 10, 2015

    Hii my lenders am sorry a have let you down its due to my health condition i spend a lot on my medication because I still have a severe back age due to the accident but i will try my best to send something and my kids were going back to school. thanks and may God bless you.

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  • Sarah    Sep 5, 2015

    Hallow my lenders am happy for your understanding my health is improving am out of the hospital am nursing the wounds .The reason a want to change my payment schedule is because my two cows died when a got an accident and since a had told you earlier that am the bread winner of my family as a single mother,everything has gone down.I am not in position to do anything at the moment your loan help me a lot to move from one level to the other my kids when to school without any problem but since I have lost everything now they haven't go to school this therm due to my financial crisis.The amount that i have stated above I will be paying every month until the day I will be able to work again then I will start my dairy farming business even though am stressed now , I will never give up I will try my best to work more harder and move on doing business with you people and i would want to take another loan from your organization pray for me may God bless you all thanks.

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  • Sarah    Aug 11, 2015

    Hallo my lenders am very sory for my late payment of my loan and communication too. I have been going trough a lot of problems of late a got an accident en a have been undergoing serous treatment am not in a position to move to anywhere because my backage was seriously affected by the accident. Again a lost my two cows due to poor management since I was very sick there was an outbreak of foot and mouth and I was not informed earlier since a was admitted in the hospital by the person who was managing my dairy farming so I have lost everything I had.I am pleading with my lenders that please give me some time to recover well then I will look for money to pay my loan please a can't run away from repaying but it will take some time since am not in a position to do anything now please be patient with me when a recover a will pay all my arrears hope you will consider my request may God bless u all and I am very sory for everything that has happen it was not my intention thanks.

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  • Sarah    May 24, 2015

    I am presently in very bad shape financially as a result of prolonged sickness in my family involving my children and l.Being the sole bread earner and having no one around to see to my farming business it has been very hard for me to make any meaningful income.l have had to spend quite a big amount on medication.God willing l will increase the installment amount in due course after l resume my business program as before.

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  • shappysfunland    Apr 22, 2015

    Thank you for communicating your situation. Best of luck and just try to do your best and continue to communicate your situation. Thank you and take care.

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  • Sarah    Apr 13, 2015

    I would like to increase my loan instalments to 300 shillings per week.The milk production has started picking and soon all will be fine.my health is also very much improved.
    However l still have school fees to pay for my kids when schools open for term two in May and this will still affect my finances.l look forward to better time around June God willing

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  • Sarah    Apr 13, 2015

    l am writing to let my lenders know that l have not been repaying my loan on time and that l am in arrears.l have been down with sickness for the last three months and my kid daughter has also been on and offanother contributing factor has been the Low season as a result of prolonged draught in my area.milk production as well as purchasing power has really gone down.These factors have drastically affected my earnings hence leading to my current situation.the rains have come and l believe that soon things will be back to normal.In a nutshell l have done very poorly and l askm you to bera with my status while l get back on my feet.Be blessed.

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  • BernadetteV    Apr 1, 2015

    Sorry to hear of you health problems. Wishing you and your daughter a speedy recovery to good health.

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  • Sarah    Apr 1, 2015

    I would first of all like to sincerely apologise to the whole zidisha fraternity for my failure to honour my repsyment instalments for the last thirty days or so.In fact as I write this email I am from hospital for treatment.
    My health has been so poor for the last two months and my efforts to the doctors diognize the problem and get me the appropriate treatment ha not yieded much. This has left me confused not knowing what to do.
    This fact coupled with the dry weather has adversly affected my dairy business.worst hit is my chicken business which requires my close supervision.My business has been deastically affected hence low incme and the hight cost of treatment in my country l have not been able to meet all my financial obligations hence my present status.my baby daughter has equally been down now and then with sickness.you can imagine we have been attending hospital at the same time. All this requires money.
    To the lenders l am asking for your understanding and forgiveness.Pray for me.I will resume my normal repayment as soon as l get back to my normal self and immediately my business picks up.
    Thanks and be blessed abundantly.
    Sarah

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  • Sarah    Feb 28, 2015

    l am in financial mess at present and so not able to remit the payment expected of me.l have been down with sickness and my daughter too has been unwell for quite some time now.l am just from the hospital a few moments ago.
    the fact that am the sole bread winner makes the situation even more worse.The cows production of milk is very low and now that am not able to supervise the work things are not moving in the right direction.
    l am praying to God to heal me faster so tha l can pick up from where l left things and move on.
    l ask zidisha family to pray form me so tha l may recover quickly.Gog bless you all.

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  • Sarah    Jan 27, 2015

    I have been going through financial constraints for the last two months.My income has gone down drastically due to the following factors;Long Drought spell which has reduced milk production hence less earnings.2)high cost in chicken feeds and stiff market competition for supply of eggs.As a result my profit margin has reduced to $100 instead of $300.
    Despite all these I have personally been sick and in fact just recovering.Being the beginning of the year my children have to move into the next grade in their respective schools.my first born son is now in form three and needs $500 for fees.I managed to pay only half the amount.However I am very positive that this is not a permanent condition and soon things will get back to normal.I sincerely need to work extra hard to achieve my big dream of owning land and settling there with my children.I have no one else to rely on except Zidisha.I very much need to add more dairy cows to enhance milk production and increase my income.l know with Zidisha nothing is impossible.l shall overcome.god bless you Zidisha family

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  • Sarah    Jan 27, 2015

    My business profit has tremendously gone down.l have also been sick for the last one month and as such am unable to meet the loan requirement.My baby boy needed quite some good amount of money fee school fees.
    Due to the long drought season here milk production has gone down.However the eggs market is good but production cost has gone up.This has eaten into my income such that l am making $100 instead of $300.am very stressed and l tend to think that this has contributed to my poor health condition.
    So for the time being l will be comfortable with the little amount l have quoted but will improve on it immediately my business gets back on its feet.

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  • shappysfunland    Jan 20, 2015

    Hi Sarah, can you provide an update on the repayment of your loan? It looks like it is a little bit behind. Thank you for the information.

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  • Sarah    Jan 10, 2015

    l had some problems with one of my cows but now it is back to normal milk production.I had to spend some money on its treatment.Milk is now very scarce due to the dry season and this has made the price to shoot so l am expecting good returns.
    My wish is to finish the loan l have quickly so that l may get another loan that will make me earn more.l have a very strong feeling l will achieve my big dream of buying land for myself and my kid in the next two years if things will move at this rate.so far l am very grateful to Zidisha because it has turned my life for better.l want to thank all those who contributed to my loan funding and wish them all the best in their endeavor to change the lives of many people in this world who have no access to Bank loans like me.God bless you abundantly

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  • Sarah    Nov 15, 2014

    I am experiencing financial problems at the moment due to sickness of both me and my kids.I look forward to resuming the normal payment as soon as possible.
    so far l have been doing well,How ever the cow l bought had some health problems and l had to spend 50$ to have her back to normal status.Just almost immediately the school where my son goes was burned down by an arsonist.
    My son's personal effects were burned down in the dormitory and l had to spend 100$ to replace them. This was a big set back for me.
    And as if this was not enough, both my kids and l fell sick and have been on treatment for the last one and half weeks.l have so far spend 40$ on our medication.l am looking forward to a better season in milk sells during the Christmas Festivals.l will therefore be able to resume my normal payment schedule.l imagine if Zidisha was not there where would l be?

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    • BernadetteV    Nov 16, 2014

      Hope that your family and the cow stay healthy and that things will be better for you.

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  • Sarah    Oct 2, 2014

    I invited Billy Mabele email [email protected] to join Zidisha and evrtytime he wants to connect his account with his facebook this is the response he gets "Another Zidisha account is already linked to this Facebook account.

    If you have linked your Facebook account to another endorser or borrower account in the past, please log in to your original account in order to complete your application.

    If you cannot access your previous account, please use the 'Forgot Password?' link below the login box to reset your password."
    He has never done anything to do with zidisha yet he's been asked to refer to an account that he ain't aware. Please help out.

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