Women in the Philippines face staggering barriers to achieving economic stability. One of these barriers is lack of access to credit. Already, high unemployment rates mean many Filipino’s are unable to find paying jobs. On top of this, banks often see these women as “unbankable” and will not grant them loans, preventing them from starting their own income-generating projects.

As an employee of Taytay Sa Kauswajan, Inc (TSKI), a microfinance partner of Opportunity International (a GROWTH Act endorser and Women Thrive Worldwide partner) Julie Encontró began as a Loan Officer, traveling to villages and extending loans to hardworking women who simply needed the right opportunities. Now as a Business Development Services Manager, Julie empowers these women with training to grow their businesses, move out of the informal sector, and escape poverty in the long-run. One of Julie’s clients, Nida, was able to get her sausages into local businesses after completing meat processing training by TSKI. Now she is earning enough money to send her son to school and buy medicine for her husband.

The GROWTH Act is an innovative bill that would help women worldwide access credit and training. Now before Congress, the GROWTH Act would shape U.S. foreign assistance programs to address some of the most crippling economic barriers women face, including access to credit. Barriers that, if removed, would give millions of women the opportunity to thrive.

Learn More About the GROWTH Act