Cambodians face mounting pain from microfinance debt

A monk walks in front of a branch office of Amret Microfinance Institution in Daun Penh district, Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital, April 5, 2024. (Sun Narin/VOA Khmer) Lun Sam Ath, 45, with her son, Then Sithet, 10, sells face masks on a street in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia, April 5, 2024 (Sun Narin/VOA Khmer)

Five years ago, Lun Sam Ath took out a $12,000 loan to build a new wooden house and repay a previous loan that she had used to buy a motorbike.