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[music playing]

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Tangail, Bangladesh

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-Jyohti Mon Kaan was one of
the early borrowers.

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In December of 1979 she first learned
of this new organization

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that would give loans even to
a poor woman such as her.

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Today she looks back
on a different life

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where every day was a struggle just
to keep a roof over their heads.

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-My house was made
of straw, the roof too.

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When it rained, everything
would be drenched.

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I used to have to cover my children
so they wouldn’t get wet.

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I tried to put plantain leaves
on the roof to shelter us.

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-She was married in 1962
at the age of 10

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and had her first child
when she was 15.

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Her husband worked
as a field laborer,

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making less than 20 cents a day.

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So, having enough to eat
was a constant struggle.

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It is with difficulty that
she speaks of those times.

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-I’ll never forget that time.

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I always believed that God would
provide but we kept waiting.

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My children were starving to death.

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Sorry, I can’t talk about this…

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It’s hard to explain how much
I’ve struggled in my life.

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It’s very painful to talk about.

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But now God has provided.

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I never had clothing like this.
I had one piece.

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I would wash one piece of it
and wear it wet,

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then turn and wash the other end.

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Now, by the grace of God,
I have so much more.

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What else can I say?

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-In January of 1980,

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Jyohti Mon took out her first loan with
a fair amount of trepidation.

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It was for a total of
600 taka or about $10.

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With it she bought a rice husker

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and began to husk and sell rice
to the local vendors.

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Over the next year she worked hard
to make the weekly loan payments.

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Jyohti Mon made her final payment
on January 1st 1981.

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For the first time in her life

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she and her family were
eating 3 meals a day.

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-At first I was afraid
to take the loan.

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People told me that
if I didn’t replay it,

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the bank people would
kill me for the money.

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So, yes, I was very scared.

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But when I finally paid back
that first 600 taka,

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I felt brave. So, I asked
for more money!

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After that I asked for 2,000 taka.

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-Over the last 25 years,

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Jyohti Mon has successfully
taken out larger loans

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and paid them back, through a number
of diverse businesses.

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Though not all her ventures
have been successful,

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she has built up enough
of a safety net

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so that the set back is not
devastating for the family.

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Now her grandchildren enjoy a life

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that would have been
inconceivable 2 decades ago.

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Jyohti Mon would tell you
that it all started

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with a $10 loan.