MAINE, USA — The Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center, or GPIWC, is working to help immigrant entrepreneurs thrive by connecting them with financial resources.
"Immigrants continue to be our future. And if they do well, we all would do well," Reza Jalali, executive director of GPIWC, said.
The GPIWC is helping immigrant business owners apply for zero-interest loans. It comes after late 2020, when nonprofits DreamxAmerica and Kiva announced the DxA-Kiva Special Initiative. That initiative provides zero-interest loans to approved immigrant-owned business.
Businesses have been awarded loans to open, recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, and even expand.
According to Jalali, more than 50 Maine businesses have been awarded loans through the program.
"We're here to create jobs. We're here to develop workforce. And we're here to help immigrants become economically independent," Jalali said. "And in that process, we came across this partnership. And by offering them these micro loans, small family-owned businesses will thrive."
"That zero-interest loan helped me pay all the bills that I had to pay and also buy some equipment and sustain by businesses for that time period," Deborah Bafongo, owner of Angles of Love Event Design, said.
Bafongo said her business was greatly impacted when the pandemic hit, and the zero-interest loan she received help her business recover and prepare for a more positive 2022 season. She encourages other new Mainers to consider applying.
"Applying doesn't mean you're going to get your approved. You just apply and explain your business and what you do. Being able to receive that loan is really going to help them to achieve what they're trying to achieve with their business," Bafongo said. "I'm really thankful."
Another business that soon will benefit from the loan program is Burundi Star Coffee.
Co-owner Jocelyne Kamikazi came to Maine more than 15 years ago as an asylum seeker. She has since learned English here, attended college, and become an important member of the community.
"They see stuff from home, food from home, and for our Maine community or tourists, it's a really good opportunity to learn about Burundi," Kamikazi said.
Kamikazi said she sources all of her coffee directly from her home country of Burundi. By doing so, she said she's able to help support farmers in Burundi who are producing and maintaining the coffee beans they need.
"We want to grow. We want to buy direct and want to support more, because buying direct we give more in the farmers pocket," Kamikazi said.
The team at Burundi Star Coffee were told in recent weeks they were approved for a $15,000 zero-interest loan through the DxA-Kiva Special Initiative. Kamikazi said she plans to upgrade her kitchen equipment and move toward roasting coffee beans themselves. She said this loan is making it all possible to help her business here, those helping produce the product in Burundi.
"They're not only getting good coffee, they're changing peoples lives," Kamikazi said.
If you or someone you know owns or operates an immigrant-run small business, you can learn more by visiting the Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center website.