Archive for December, 2010
No road too muddy for a dedicated loan officer.
By Ellen Willems, KF13, Ecuador.
Ecuador has only two seasons: summer or dry season and winter or wet season. Right now it is winter and it rains almost every day. For the loan officers at Cooperativa San José this rain equals mud and a lot of it. To meet the poorest and most remote borrowers these loan officers spend many challenging hours on their motorcycles navigating bad roads, and, on rainy days, getting wet and covered in mud.
They do this to meet with the members of the “Ventanillas Rurales” (Village Banks). This is a special loan product Cooperativa San José offers to the most remote rural communities. These Village Banks consist of 10 to 30 members and serve as solidarity groups. The loans they take out are relatively small, starting from $600. The loan terms are adjusted to the agricultural needs of the borrowers: the loan cycles vary from 9 to 14 months and the principal is due at the end of the loan term. This way the borrower can buy seeds and fertilizers today and pay back in one year after having sold his/her produce. The most common crops grown are cocoa, corn, yucca, rice, orange, passion fruit and pineapple.
Continue Reading 28 December 2010 at 12:00 gokiva 3 comments
Kyrgyzstan post-revolution
Unfortunately the only time many people hear about Kyrgyzstan is in relation to political upheaval – but I suppose that is what happens when a country of five million people has two revolutions in five years.
Colorful Finances – Finanzas de Colores
By Lourdes Toussaint KF13, Mexico
The state of Chiapas, located in the southwest Mexico, is one of the most diverse regions in terms of demographics, language, food, geography and colors. Today Chiapas is the state with the largest number of microfinance institutions. Some of these institutions have developed professional methodologies and practices that have allowed them to grow steadily and achieve efficiency and financial inclusion in remote rural areas.
El estado de Chiapas, localizado en el sureste de México, es considerado como una de las regiones más diversas en términos de población, cultura, idiomas, comida, colores, flora y fauna del país. Chiapas es el estado con mayor número de instituciones microfinancieras. Algunas de estas instituciones han logrado desarrollar metodologías y prácticas de gran profesionalidad que les han permitido llevar los servicios financieros a zonas rurales remotas.
Continue Reading 27 December 2010 at 12:00 lulatoussaint 10 comments
Wait, What Do You Do Again?
By Eric Burdullis, KF12, Cuzco, Peru
As a Kiva Fellow, no two days are the same. One morning I will wake up at 5am to try to visit a borrower before they head out to work, and the next I’ll be in the office uploading loans or training the Kiva team on how to take a great picture or write a journal worth reading. In fact, as a Kiva Fellow, our job is so diverse that the Kiva staff creates long lists of things for us to do called deliverables. My favorite on these “To Dos” is Borrower Verifications. Essentially, we go into the field and do a spot check to make sure that information uploaded on the Kiva website is real.
Silk weaving in Cambodia: An age-old tradition struggles to survive
by Lina Goldberg, KF12, MAXIMA Mikroheranhvatho, Cambodia
Cambodia has a long and rich history in silk production and weaving dating back more than a thousand years. Women across southern Cambodia have looms in their homes, and they practice the art passed down from their mothers and grandmothers. But now the ancient craft is slowly dying as the cost of imported raw silk continues to climb while the price of finished silk textiles drops.
Continue Reading 26 December 2010 at 10:05 Lina Goldberg 46 comments
No Place Like Home
By Abhishek Banerjee, KF13, Armenia
This is the first Christmas I will be spending away from home. Even though I left home at 18 and have spent a lot of time travelling on my own, I have always made it back in time for the holidays. This time around, I will be celebrating with a bunch of expats and some Armenians who find Christmas on December 25th to be amusing enough to get involved.
You see, Armenians follows the Gregorian calendar and as such, Christmas falls on January 6th. As a result, December 25th is just another day for most Armenians. Occasionally, someone will see a foreigner like myself and say ‘Merry Christmas!’, if only to see my reaction. As I sit here on the evening of December 24th, I can’t help but think about Christmas back home.
Continue Reading 25 December 2010 at 19:00 abanrjee Leave a comment
Happy Holidays from ACCION Texas-Louisiana
So far, I’ve spent my whole fellowship in ACCION Texas-Louisiana HQ in San Antonio. But, as the name implies, there’s a lot more to ACCION than this office. So I recently decided to take a road trip and visit some of the other offices. I visited Louisiana and a few of the offices in Texas.
I also asked someone at each office to say a little something to the Kiva community. Here’s what they had to say. Unfortunately, I had a few technical difficulties with the video so the sound isn’t quite synced.
Happy Holidays, and thank you!
Bridget Lewis is a Kiva Fellow at ACCION Texas-Louisiana in San Antonio, Texas. To help drive economic development in Texas and Louisiana, join the ACCION Texas-Louisiana lending team!
The Tupperware Effect in Peru?
By Sarah Benjamin, KF13, Peru
As I meet with borrowers here in the low-income areas of Lima, I’m constantly surprised by how many “Avon ladies” there are. Direct sales (for companies like Avon and Tupperware) are booming in developing countries like South Africa, Indonesia, and of course, Peru. Avon began sales in Peru in 1982, but only in the last ten years have things really taken off. Women are looking for ways to earn an income while still maintaining a flexible schedule and completing their traditional tasks relating to family and home.
Continue Reading 25 December 2010 at 09:37 Sarah Leave a comment
Microfinance in Iraq
Today I had the opportunity to interview a couple of members of staff from the Iraq offices, with my Kiva co-ordinator translating I got to learn a lot more information about micro-finance and the development and reconstruction in Iraq.
Continue Reading 25 December 2010 at 02:00 carolinepattinson 2 comments
Shalom from Israel!
By Margarita Salasyuk, KF13 Israel and Palestine
I would like to extend a warm welcome to Kiva’ first partner in Israel – Koret Israel Economic Development Funds (KIEDF). I worked in Tel Aviv with KIEDF in November and quickly realized that Israel is a fascinating country for a variety of historical, cultural, religious, political and economic reasons. This blog post is dedicated to a small profile of Israel and the need for further development of microfinance in the country.
Continue Reading 24 December 2010 at 13:00 Margarita Salasyuk 1 comment
Christmas in Thanh Hoa
Christmas is not a big religious holiday or consumer holiday for that matter in Vietnam as is it is in the US and other western countries. Vietnam has no state religion and the majority of the population has no religious affiliation; with roughly 8% of the population listed as Roman-Catholics or Protestants, Christmas is somewhat of an afterthought if not only a marketing tool adopted from the western countries (which can mainly be seen in the capital city of Hanoi and Saigon) to many people.
Continue Reading 24 December 2010 at 05:00 duykhiemle 1 comment
From Rwanda to Kenya: Why Lend Through Kiva
By Jennifer Coronel, KF13, Kenya
In the summer of 2009, I spent a few weeks in the small East African nation of Rwanda. I was there as a student as well as an observer, one who could testify to others about conditions in Rwanda today. Like in any country, various standards of living could be found, from upper-class mansions to poverty-stricken slums. However, never before had I seen these extremes exist so closely together.
More often than not, poverty is the result of circumstances difficult to change. Although people can be very resourceful in making the best of what they have, the trap of poverty is difficult to escape. On numerous occasions in Rwanda I met a young person with the desire and intellect to attend school. Yet he or she simply did not have the resources to pay for it. Alongside poverty, tremendous amounts of potential exist. This potential can and must be harnessed.
Continue Reading 22 December 2010 at 10:00 jennifermarie88 Leave a comment
Voices from Nairobi: Justice for Kenya?
By Tara Capsuto, KF 13, Kenya
Kenyans breathed a collective sigh of relief on Dec 15th when the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced the much anticipated list of Kenyan leaders suspected of organizing the violence following the disputed 2007 election that left 1,200 Kenyans dead and an estimated 500,000 more displaced from their homes. The list of 6 includes senior public officials like the Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Minister of Higher Education, and the Head of Civil Service. Many questions remain as to whether this particular course of justice is the right one, but here’s what 8 Kenyans had to say about it.
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Florence’s dream
by Jacqueline Gunn, KF13, Christian Rural Aid Network, Ghana
Whenever I choose a not for profit to support, I always carry out in depth research before I commit. I read through their financial accounts to see how their money is spent, I search for stories that I think have a long term benefit- I’m a natural sceptic and I want the organisation to prove to me that the money will be spent well, I dislike waste. For me, the opportunity of being a Kiva fellow would allow me to be the ultimate investigator into microfinance and hopefully prove my sceptic side totally wrong.
Continue Reading 21 December 2010 at 11:00 tinkgunn 2 comments
What does a Kiva Fellow do? A day in my Fellow’s workplan
You are a dedicated Kiva lender and you live vicariously through the fascinating stories published to the Fellow’s blog. But what does a Kiva Fellow actually do? Everything actually, because Kiva Fellows are superheroes. But to be more specific, each fellow is assigned a workplan with specific outcomes to guide their MFI towards best practices. Take a look into a day of my workplan at Fundacion Mujer!
Continue Reading 21 December 2010 at 08:12 Rachel G 3 comments
Road tripping the lone star state
So far, I’ve spent my whole fellowship in ACCION Texas-Louisiana HQ in San Antonio. But, as the name implies, there’s a lot more to ACCION than this office. So I recently decided to take a road trip and visit some of the other offices. I visited Louisiana and blogged about it, and a few offices in Texas.
Here’s the Texas portion of my trip.
Dallas and Fort Worth
The Dallas office is the second most populous office. They have two Loan Officers and two Loan Processors, as well as a Vice President for North Texas Operations. The Fort Worth office is much newer, and only has one person there full time. It’s kind of hard to find (they’re on the second story of a large mall) but much more centrally located than most other offices.
Rod Douglas, the operations VP here, is responsible for loan production in North Texas, for working with the partners, and eventually for marketing and fundraising. As I’ve mentioned before, ACCION relies on donations to complete their budget, and marketing is a big challenge. The San Antonio office is excellent at raising funds – thanks primarily to the efforts of the VP of Development, Kay Simpson, and Janie Barrera, the founding president and CEO. But as an office gets larger, the need for a local presence and community investment grows.
That’s where Rod comes in. He was a banker for 30 years before serving as development director for a school in East Dallas for five years. Janie, in looking to fill this position, had many candidates with a financial background, but not with fundraising experience as well. A mutual friend said she knew someone just like that, and Rod joined the ACCION team in August.
George Cerna, one of the loan officers in Dallas, talked to me about the importance of the social and cultural parts of the job. George said you “want to develop a rapport with people. Especially in West Dallas. The Hispanic community is less trusting of others and they should be. So you can’t just hand out a business card. You have to get to know that person. … People aren’t looking for a handout; they’re just looking for a little assistance right now. …We always give hope, even when we have to turn down a loan.”
Me and the ladies of Fort Worth
Leticia Gutierrez, a Loan Processor, said that the personality of the Loan Officers is important for that reason. “Mayra (the Fort Worth Loan Officer) has a very good relationship with all of our clients. She builds that rapport so the client will continue to come back to ACCION….I can tell you that in my opinion, the key in this line of work is great customer service and a passion for what we do. Those two combinations can guarantee the client will be happy and you will enjoy what it is we do. “
Houston (North & West)
Houston is a two-office city, because the greater Houston area is almost 6 million people. Bridget Ross, the Loan Officer for the Houston North office, said she thinks the metropolitan area could easily take a third Loan Officer; “there’s that big of a need.”
Houston, like all ACCION offices, gets clients from all walks of life. One of the biggest challenges Houston’s clients face, though, is credit problems. That’s one reason that Ismenia Fletcher, the Hispanic Markets Manager, says microfinance organizations are so important; “people have to start or re-build their credit history. It’s not just for people with a little taqueria who want to grow it bigger, but people who… have the capacity to pay back, but don’t have credit history.”
Shirley Brooks, the Regional Director here, said that some clients get involved in damaging credit situations “because they think they have no other options. We are the other option.”
Bridget states that one frustration is people who come to her after they’ve spent all their money. “People come and say ‘if I had money I wouldn’t be coming to you.’ That’s the wrong way of going about it. It’s always better to use a lender’s money… it helps you leverage your capital, because lenders then see that you have something to fall back on if you hit a crisis…and then you build a relationship with the lender. …If you come to us before the crisis, we can help you more – not just with capital, but with resources too.”
Financial Literacy
One of the other major challenges for clients is financial literacy. As Shirley puts it; “just because they know how to do work… like fix cars, doesn’t mean they know how to run a business. … How should you price your work? How do you balance your financials?”
That’s why financial education is so important. As Shirley said; “credit without education is junk.” ACCION provides that education in a variety of ways.
Throughout an application, the ACCION officer gives guidance to the applicant on their potential to get a loan and on what they can do to improve their credit. Sarah Kuntz, the Community Outreach Coordinator, said “One client told me ‘Oh, I didn’t know why I was rejected by such and such a bank, but now I understand that.’ … Someone else told me ‘I’m so happy; this is the first time … I’ve signed a legal document where I really know what I’m signing.’ …It’s definitely a lot of education. A lot of people don’t know what credit is, how credit works, that they have to separate their business and personal finances, that they can’t be overextended in debt…”
If someone wants more detailed financial or credit coaching, ACCION refers them to one of their partners who specialize in exactly that, usually for free. In Houston, those partners are Money Management International, Credit Coalition, and Family Services of Greater Houston.
In Houston and New Orleans there is one more tool to improve financial literacy: the IDA program. This is a program that provides business training and a support network for clients who own or are starting a business. They get expert mentors, who are retired business owners themselves. The program also encourages a saving culture by matching savings, thanks to a partnership with Capital One. This is the first business IDA program, at least in Texas, and it’s currently in its second year. The program was created by a partnership of ACCION Texas-Louisiana, Money Management International, SCORE, with support from the African American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston. It was funded by Capital One.
Celebrating a birthday at the office
I think Bridget expressed the impact of that knowledge best. She told me that she’s “passionate for people in business because it’s a faith walk. …People come in totally discouraged but leave encouraged, even though I had to turn down their loan application, at this time. You can’t put a price on that… They know they make better decisions with information.”
And that help is appreciated. Sarah told me “I think that’s because people really appreciate that we gave them an opportunity when no one believed in them. I think that’s why they keep coming back to ACCION.”
Bridget Lewis is a Kiva Fellow at ACCION Texas-Louisiana in San Antonio, Texas. To help drive economic development in Texas and Louisiana, join the ACCION Texas-Louisiana lending team!
Eruptions, flooding and Monopoly
By Ellen Willems, KF13, Ecuador
On November 22nd the Tungurahua volcano, located in the central mountains of Ecuador, started to expel ashes and on December 4th a major eruption forced the farmers living in the area to leave. The Tungurahua volcano (Tungurahua meaning “throat of fire” in Quichua) has been active since 1999. Aurélie Dagneaux, a previous Kiva Fellow working at Cooperativa San José, wrote an interesting blog entry on the consequences of this activity for the people living and working in the affected areas. Many of KIVA’s field partners combine the financial products they provide with non financial services in order to improve the general wellbeing of their clients.
Continue Reading 20 December 2010 at 12:00 gokiva Leave a comment
Catching the Christmas Spirit
By Eric Burdullis, KF12, Cuzco, Peru
First of all, I love Christmas. The tree, Christmas lights (you can ask my parents about what I did to our house when I was a little kid), hot cider, going over to Grandma´s house on Christmas Eve, eating tamales (everyone has their own Christmas traditions), the stockings, Eggs Benedict Christmas morning, watching my Beagle open up his gifts. The feeling of being around those who you love and those who love you. I love all of it.
Continue Reading 20 December 2010 at 08:00 Eric Burdullis 1 comment
The Making Of A Kiva Christmas Song
A couple of weeks ago I found myself without internet for three days. Determined not to let this beat me (internet is often pretty essential for a Kiva Fellow) I tried to think of ways to stay productive. Naturally, the first idea that came into my head was to write a Kiva Christmas song.
Continue Reading 19 December 2010 at 11:31 nickhamiltonkiva 3 comments
Four days to make a difference?
By Michelle Curtis, KF13, Rwanda
If you are a lender on Kiva then you may have an inkling of how I’m feeling as I write this blog. Elated and…well…wondrous.
Thousands of individuals, sophisticated software, the internet and collective human will managed to pull it off in just four days.
Continue Reading 19 December 2010 at 08:00 shell Leave a comment
Interest in Alleviating Poverty
By Jerry Harter, KF13 Indonesia
When I first heard that micro-finance institutions charge their clients interest on the money they lend – even the money that was provided interest-free from Kiva lenders – it really took me aback. It didn’t seem right, especially considering that the rate of interest can be upward of 35% apr. I first learned of this when I was applying to become a Kiva Fellow and felt a need to come to terms with it before committing to the program.
Continue Reading 18 December 2010 at 23:40 Jerry Harter 6 comments
A Farm for the Poorest of the Poor
In our first week as Kiva trainees we were taught that microloans are not intended for the very poorest of the poor. Microfinance institutions target the unbankable poor, those who can benefit from a loan for an income-generating activity. There is another level of poverty below that, those who need emergency help for basic human needs. Many MFIs develop alternative services for this segment of the population. At CCT, one of Kiva’s partners in the Philippines, they have started a sustainable farm for street dwellers: Kaibigan (“Friend”) Village. (more…)
Participating in the Dialogue: The Role of Microfinance Critics (Part 1)
By Julie Shea, KF13, Bolivia
As a Kiva Fellow and ardent believer in the poverty alleviating potential of microfinance, I make an effort to keep abreast the developments and discussions within the industry, both from the practical and academic side. While I find myself frustrated over negative articles or comments that oppose much what I am witnessing as a fellow on the ground, I must remind myself that this criticism can lead to constructive debates, and ultimately to advancements and improvements within the field.
Continue Reading 18 December 2010 at 08:00 julieshea 2 comments
Falling in love with the Philippines…One song at a time
By Joanne Gan, KF13, Philippines
Singing and videoke are a large part of the Filipino culture, as I have discovered over the past month and a half while working here. In my first week at the Negros Women for Tomorrow Foundation (NWTF), I was taken out by staff members to a nearby lounge – and being my first time there (as with all new patrons), was invited on to the stage to sing with the live band. Let’s just say my rendition of “California Gurls” does not quite compare to Katy Perry’s.
Since that first week, some of my most memorable experiences have involved videoke and singing, and I’d like to share a few of them here…
Continue Reading 17 December 2010 at 18:01 jgannz 3 comments
How Good is Kiva for Microfinance Institutions?
Kiva field partner office in Cambodia
To carry out its mission of connecting people through lending to alleviate poverty, Kiva allows microfinance institutions (MFIs) to raise 0% interest capital on the Kiva website. MFIs use this capital to lend to entrepreneurs and collect (and keep) the interest on these loans. For MFIs, being able to raise interest-free capital is arguably the greatest benefit of joining Kiva. While this funding is interest-free, there is a still a cost associated with raising the capital. MFIs must expend resources to post loans, repayment figures, and journal updates on the Kiva website. Do these costs outweigh the benefits? Financially speaking, how good is Kiva for their field partner microfinance institutions? Let’s look at a real life example of a large Asian for-profit microfinance institution, considering only at the incremental benefits and costs associated with partnering up with Kiva (all figures in US Dollars). (more…)
Microfinance in Vietnam: the Struggle
As of 2009, it is estimated that only 40% of the demands for microfinance services are being met in Vietnam – 60% (or 12 million poor/low income people) still do not have access to microcredit services.
Continue Reading 16 December 2010 at 17:00 duykhiemle Leave a comment
Road tripping in Alligator country
By Bridget Lewis, KF13, Texas USA.
So far, I’ve spent my whole fellowship in ACCION Texas-Louisiana HQ in San Antonio. But, as the name implies, there’s a lot more to ACCION than this office. So I recently decided to take a road trip and visit some of the other offices. …Here’s the Louisiana portion of my trip, in reverse order; New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Alexandria, and Shreveport.
Continue Reading 16 December 2010 at 12:00 Bridget 1 comment
Graphic Design and Biochemistry for the Poor
Betsy McCormick, KF 12, Medellin, Colombia
Interactuar is, without a doubt, one of the most inspiring microfinance institutions (MFIs) I have come across to date in my work with Kiva. More than just a credit institution, Interactuar, which is located in Medellin, Colombia, believes wholeheartedly in the power of microfinance when combined with additional programs, such as client education and consulting services. Two of these entrepreneurship development services strike me as particularly unique and merit elaboration: the design center and the nutrition laboratory.
Continue Reading 16 December 2010 at 10:00 betsywmccormick 8 comments
Hitting the Road with Kiva
By Leslie Kincaid, KF 13 Sierra Leone
Last week I had the opportunity take a trip to visit three of ARD’s branches outside of Freetown. I spent five days traveling around Sierra Leone with Jusu, the Kiva Coordinator and MIS Manager, and our driver, General. We traveled to Bo, Kenema, and Makeni, the 2nd, 3rd and 4th largest cities in Sierra Leone.
I enjoyed the trip and was excited about the opportunity to see other parts of Sierra Leone. It was fun working at the other branches of ARD and meeting their staff members, who were all very friendly and welcoming. Before leaving Freetown, I considered our working conditions at the head office pretty poor. Now, I consider the Freetown office a bit luxurious after attempting to work for four days with no fans, AC, running water and unreliable internet and power!
Continue Reading 16 December 2010 at 08:00 Leslie Kincaid 2 comments
