SUMAN
Suman’s father passed away when she was young. Her mother, Moni, started sewing clothes for a living to support her three children, bringing home a monthly income of about $77. Her mother’s hard work and kind and encouraging demeanor as she strives to make life as easy as possible for her children, is a source of inspiration for Suman. People tell Suman that she has a lovely voice and fine reading skills: other students in her class prefer her to read aloud their lesson of the day. Suman likes to watch cricket, which she thinks is a very exciting sport. She likes to watch television and listen to music as well. Painting different nature scenes and people is her hobby. She has a list of problems she would like to address if given the means: Dowry, child abuse, women’s education and drug smuggling are but a few. She would also like to develop workshops to teach people the importance of trees in our ecosystem and how to conserve them. Suman believes in the value of respect and feels that there will be no peace in the world if we don’t respect each other. After finishing her MBA, Suman would like to start her own business.
Asma, Sultana & Suman Akter
You should know …
Suman can find inspiration for starting her own business in the camps. Since 2006, over 1,800 families have been empowered through OBAT’s micro finance program. This program was mainly designed for women entrepreneurs who were offered micro loans ranging from $100 to $1,000. Extensive training before and during the program was also provided to enable the borrowers to run their businesses and to teach them basic financial literacy. Instead of perpetuating their cycle of poverty by making them dependent on external assistance, OBAT’s program has made them self-sufficient. The women who have thrived as part of the micro-finance program have mostly been illiterate. Imagine the good that a well-educated and idealistic entrepreneur such as Suman will do for her community!
THE AVERAGE COST PER YEAR OF SUMAN’S EDUCATION FROM NOW UNTIL NINE YEARS LATER WHEN SHE FINISHES HER MBA, IS $840. HELP SUMAN GET HER MBA DEGREE AND BRIGHTEN HER FUTURE. YOU CAN FUND ANY NUMBER OF YEARS YOU WISH TO. YOUR SUPPORT WILL MEAN THE WORLD TO HER AS WITHOUT IT, SHE CANNOT DREAM ABOUT AN EDUCATION AND WILL CONTINUE TO LIVE A LIFE OF POVERTY.