Restoring Livelihoods After Disaster

Zin Ngwe Lwin, a 28-year-old mother and small business owner from Maha Aungmye Township, lost everything after the earthquake in March, her home and livelihood.

Before the disaster, Zin ran a small but growing sewing business supported by loans from VisionFund Myanmar. She had bought her own sewing machine and supplemented her income by selling breakfast meals from home. Her efforts paid off and she was even able to send her daughter to a private school, her source of great pride.

Everything changed the day the earthquake hit. “I was sewing at a neighbour’s house when it happened,” Zin recalls. “I ran home barefoot to grab our important documents and then rushed to my daughter’s school. When I returned, our home and my entire business was gone, my sewing machine, all my equipment and supplies, everything was destroyed.”

Displaced and living in overcrowded conditions, Zin received emergency support from World Vision, helping her family meet basic needs in the immediate aftermath.

Determined to recover, she took a 600,000 MMK recovery loan from VisionFund and purchased a new sewing machine. Today, Zin is slowly rebuilding her business and her family’s future. “I’m rebuilding not just to survive,” she says, “but so my daughter can continue her education.”