Wad el Bashir is a settlement on the outskirts of Khartoum populated by internally displaced people (IDPs), many of whom have been living there for a generation or more.  Work is hard to come by, and training opportunities are scarce.  In the current political climate it is not always easy for people who are not from Khartoum to find work there, and for many the long journey into the city centre is prohibitive.  The 1300 SDG (around $540) loans FAR gives for business ventures such as donkey carts or welding machines provide a way into the world of commerce and a way out of hardship.  Prior to recieiving the loan, recipients undertake intensive training on how to manage their prospective businesss, use money effectively, and understand the rules and regulations for running a business so the loan is completely paid back.  FAR and WEBDA’s monitoring work has meant that all loans are repaid in full within the year.  The difference the loan makes to business and quality of life cannot be underestimated.

Credit is  hard to come by in Sudan and even the most profitable businesses will not be able to secure a loan. Loaning someone a lump sum greatly increases their opportunities.  Mohamed(right) used the loan to start a donkey cart business.  Wad el Bashir is a large settlement and donkey carts are in high demand.  The loan also allowed him to register his children into a local school, requiring an upfront sum which he could not have raised otherwise.  Two years ago, there were days when there was not enough food to go around, but now Mohamed looks forward to the day when he is able to send his son to university.

                                              
Loans can also help to reinvigorate and expand small businesses.  Sadig has been working for twenty years in Wad el Bashir as a welder, designer and scrap metal worker. After taking out the FAR loan in 2008, he hired an apprentice and has been able to take on more work. Since then he attended a course on design and is now in demand as a wrought iron designer.  His plans for the future are to secure another loan and build a garage and workshop to for more machinery and workspace, providing more employment for his community.

This year, with a referendum on southern self-determination scheduled for January, many IDPs in Khartoum are faced with the big decision about whether to stay in the North or return to the South.  Many cannot afford the $50 barge ticket home.  FAR’s loan helped one woman send her family back to Juba and now Susan(left) is into the final few repayments.  In her stall at the edge of a public square in Wad el Bashir, she gently heats seeds in spices which she sells as snacks.  Once she has paid back the loan, and earnt enough money, she’ll go back to the South.  But unlike many returnees, she will return with new skills, and without debt.