Arariwa: an integrated system for rural development

‘Humundi and Alterfin target the same profile: vulnerable and disadvantaged families in rural areas.’

The Arariwa association is active in the Cusco region of Peru. This region consists mainly of rural communities, where 50% of the population lives below the poverty line. Economic activity is based on informal micro-enterprises.

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Arariwa structures its work around three components:

• Arariwa Promoción for rural development;
• the Centro de Formación y Producción ARARIWA for youth training;
• and Microfinanzas ARARIWA for financial inclusion.

Humundi has been supporting Arariwa Promoción since 2015, while Alterfin has been financing Microfinanzas Arariwa since November 2023. This dual collaboration has produced remarkable synergies on the ground.

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Take the case of the Lamay district. Arariwa Promoción organises groups of producers and artisans with the support of Humundi. The latter provides them with technical assistance and puts them in touch with potential buyers and/or markets. For its part, Microfinanzas Arariwa has set up 15 ‘village banks’ within these same groups, thanks to funding from Alterfin.

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These small funds are set up to provide microloans tailored to the common interests and expectations of the group. They benefit a total of 191 members, including 141 women.

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‘Humundi and Alterfin target the same profile: vulnerable and disadvantaged families in rural areas,’ says Hugo Ramiro Yanque Martínez, CEO of Arariwa, who also appreciates our shared focus on environmental challenges, market access and financial education.

Casil producer: transforming family coffee farming

‘It is precisely this complementarity that has motivated us and enabled us to operate effectively in critical moments.’

For its part, the Casil coffee producers' cooperative is active in the Peruvian Amazon region (which covers 60% of the country).

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Alterfin has been supporting Casil since 2006. Before our intervention, the cooperative was too dependent on its own funds, which prevented it from pre-financing its members' harvests.

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Even today, our loans remain essential to the cooperative's operations, as we are still its only international lender. But lack of access to finance was not Casil's only problem. It faced the classic challenges of family farming: loss of soil fertility due to unsustainable practices and limited access to markets.

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The arrival of Rikolto in 2022 marked a new turning point. The NGO supported Casil in improving its agricultural practices, from the development of agroforestry to crop diversification, including the implementation of traceability systems and the strengthening of the commercial component.

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The combination of technical and financial support made all the difference for Casil: ‘It is precisely this complementarity that has motivated us and enabled us to operate effectively in critical moments,’ says Adita Mijhuanca Ocana, project manager at Casil.

Technical and financial support, hand in hand

These two examples demonstrate that by joining forces, we create unparalleled added value in vulnerable rural areas. That is why Alterfin believes so strongly in collaboration and networking.

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In an uncertain global context, more than ever, this type of complementarity is key to building sustainable alternatives and maximising our impact.

In the face of adversity, we want to stand together as organisations.

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