Small small

Emmanuel    May 6, 2015

Dear Lenders, I reached out to Benjamin again and he said business is now gradually moving, he was able to make a bulk payment yesterday which is going to cover the weeks he has defaulted, so please lets wait for it to reflect in his account. Thank you.

Benjamin Augstine    Apr 15, 2015

my reason is business is very bad these days

Emmanuel    Mar 19, 2015

I contacted Benjamin on phone because he stay far from where I am. We are at different region in Ghana. He explain to me, he is having small challenges in his business. Business is not moving as expected but he assured me to start the repayment of his loan as soon as possible. Thank you.

Emmanuel    Feb 11, 2015

Thanks Benjamin for your repayment, wish you all the best with the second loan you have raised.

Benjamin Augstine    Feb 11, 2015

well l was having some money and i added what i had from zidisha to order my goods for my customers. well for now am dealing with power banks.and some phone accessories.

Emmanuel    Feb 11, 2015

Great work done brother,keep up the good work.

Taylor Hanna    Jan 23, 2015

Dear Lenders,

I got to meet up with Benjamin this past week! He happened to be near where I was staying when we got in- touch, so we sat down for a bit to chat before heading over to his shop in Osu.

Benjamin grew up in Takoradi, on the coast. But when his father died and mother lost their home and most of their belongings, he and his five siblings were split up and he was sent to live with his aunties in the small village of Dominase. He’s spent his life working hard, first helping his family with farm work and then working at a hotel bar to save money for school. He still supports his younger brother and takes responsibility for keeping him on the right track.

Now in Accra he stays very busy: He is going to school studying medical laboratory science, he buys and sells computer accessories (when I met him, he was picking up a stock of portable batteries – a necessity in Ghana where electricity is often unreliable), and he sells tools and general goods on a street-side shop in Osu, in front of his uncle’s house.

Although it hasn’t always been easy, Benjamin’s energy, assertiveness, and natural competitiveness has kept him looking forward. And he has quite a few ideas for the future. He just finished repaying his first Zidisha loan and hopes to use future loans to help grow his uncle’s shop in Osu and build up around it. (I have to say – he’s starting with a great location right off busy Oxford Street and shaded by a beautiful tree.) And he’d also like to revive the family tradition of making and selling drums, which fell dormant after the death of his father.

Not one to forget his past, he is dedicated to giving back to his community and helping the village where he grew up and Komenda, where his mother is from. Many of the children in the villages are not in school, so Benjamin would like to help the young people attain an education as well as trade skills such as carpentry and sewing. Naturally generous, he is nicknamed the Godfather in his hometown due to his giving nature.
It was so wonderful to get to meet Ben and see his shop this past week. We are very excited to see what he has in store for us in the future and hope I get to see him again in Accra!

Taylor
Ghana Ambassador
Zidisha