Village Savings and Loan Associations (AVÈK) groups allow members to save and loan each other funds for income-generating ventures
by Juhakenson Blaise Mar. 23, 2026
Overview:
In Port-au-Prince, AVÈK community savings groups help members access small loans to fund businesses and income-generating activities, providing an alternative to banks for vulnerable populations. The model has supported financial inclusion and entrepreneurship across Haiti. However, its sustainability remains challenged by repayment risks, lack of guarantees and ongoing economic instability.Editor’s note: The names used to describe the participants in this story are pseudonyms of the featured group located in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area. They asked that their identities not be revealed for security reasons, given the proximity to gang activity around the capital.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — When Julmice Bastien, 37, left his country for the United States a couple of years ago, one thing he carried with him was his affiliation with ‘AVÈK,’ a neighborhood savings group that had helped him finance certain projects. One loan from the group for 500,000 gourdes, about $3,846, allowed Bastien to purchase a box truck about four years ago. He contracted out the vehicle to delivery drivers, generating about 3,000 gourdes, or $23, per day that he splits with the operators.
In all, the AVÈK member for more than five years says it helped the financial collective to achieve financial independence, including providing the funds to operate a vocational school in the neighborhood. The Haitian Times is withholding the name of the area for security reasons. Though living abroad now, Bastien is still repaying the loan and plans to apply for another 500,000 gourdes to purchase a three-wheeled motorcycle to operate as a taxi-moto along the Delmas Road.
“Even when the loans are not large amounts, they have allowed me to keep moving forward with my small businesses and not depend on anyone,” Bastien said.
AVÈK, which stands for “Asosyasyon Vilajwaz Epay ak Kredi” in Haitian Creole, or village savings and loan associations, are community groups that help members save money and make out small loans to them. The word in Haitian Creole also means “together,” an intentional play on words meant to connote the collaborative, supportive nature built on mutual trust that participants like Bastien find alluring. Formed mostly in areas where banks are already scarce, the groups have become a lifeline in the capital’s metropolitan area, which is under such heavy gang control that visiting existing financial institutions is often a dangerous errand.
From disaster comes an uplifting opportunity
AVEK groups are modeled after an initiative popularized in Niger in the 1990s by CARE International, according to the Implementation Guide of Village Savings and Loan Associations in Cocoa Communities. The goal then was to expand financial inclusion among low-income and rural communities. When the January 12, 2010, earthquake struck Haiti, CARE brought in the approach as a way to strengthen the economies of the most vulnerable communities. It encourages local savings and provides small loans managed by the group’s members to support income-generating activities or help families cope with emergencies.…
Source: Haitian Times
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