Rising from the rubble

“We lost everything but we’re alive and that gives me hope.” Nu Nu Yi stands in the rubble of her home and business in Mandalay. With VisionFund Myanmar’s support, she’s ready to rebuild.

That fateful day in March 28 2025, Nu Nu Yi lost not only her family home but also the business her family had spent decades building.

“We were fortunate that the whole family was out of the house when the earthquake struck. We all rushed home only to find it completely gone,” recalls Nu Nu Yi, a long-time client of VisionFund Myanmar.

Nu Nu Yi lives in Maha Aungmye Township in Myanmar’s Mandalay Region, together with her husband, two children and a grandchild. Their area was one of the hardest hit by the 7.7 magnitude earthquake. Around a hundred houses in their neighbourhood were destroyed and reduced to rubble and ash. Among them was Nu Nu Yi’s home and her family-run business producing handmade plastic baskets. They lost everything equipment, inventory, motorcycles, everything they had worked for decades was gone instantly. 

With capital support from VisionFund Myanmar, their business had grown steadily over the years, enabling Nu Nu Yi to send her children and grandchild to school, upgrade their home from a bamboo hut to a sturdy brick house, build a toilet, and drill a well. It provided not only sustainable livelihood for the family but also employment for local women in the community. Now, all that remains are the clothes they were wearing that day.

With nowhere else to go, the family temporarily stays in a local church, relying on emergency aid and food assistance. Sleep is rare, haunted by aftershocks and lingering fear. Her grandchild is too afraid to go outside, still traumatised by the experience.

“Despite everything, I am grateful that we are all safe and alive and that gives me hope. I will try again to rebuild our house and restart our business.”

In the aftermath of the disaster, VisionFund Myanmar was on the ground assessing the damage, checking in on clients like Nu Nu Yi and providing urgent support. VisionFund offers affordable, flexible recovery loans to help families rebuild their homes and restore livelihoods.

This is how we empower resilience in the face of crisis.