Author Archive
Reflections on my fellowship
KF11 James Allman-Gulino’s final blog post for his fellowship, touching on a few key thoughts about microfinance, his time in Uganda, and how his Kiva Fellowship has affected his future career plans.
Evaluating the impact of microfinance….and a Rolex recipe
KF11 James Allman-Gulino discusses impact evaluation in microfinance and what studies have been done on whether loans actually improve borrowers’ household incomes. Then just for good measure, a recipe for a Ugandan “rolex.”
Top 10 things to know about microfinance
KF11/12 James Allman-Gulino goes through a Top 10 list of the most important facts about Kiva and microfinance.
Microfinance is Contagious
KF11/12 James Allman-Gulino talks about how his Ugandan acquaintances have reacted to learning that he works with microfinance institutions, and how hearing about his work has prompted them to access vital loan capital of their loan.
How do Cooperatives work?
Kiva’s Field Partners come in all shapes and sizes, including NGOs, regulated financial institutions, and cooperatives. KF11 Fellow James Allman-Gulino discusses why some MFIs choose to organize as cooperatives and what benefits it can present to the MFI’s clients
What is Social Performance?
How do you measure whether microfinance improves the lives of borrowers? Can microfinance even be isolated as a lone source of changes in poverty status? Do MFIs always appropriately serve the needs of the poor, and how do we measure this? James Allman-Gulino looks at these and other questions in this post about “social performance.”
BRAC Uganda’s new Youth Loans
By James Allman-Gulino, KF11 Uganda
BRAC Uganda, one of Kiva’s Field Partners, will soon begin posting a new loan product to Kiva that gives at-risk young women a unique chance to access loan capital. Read up on the new product and how Kiva lenders can support it!
The Challenges of Kiva
By James Allman-Gulino, KF11 Uganda
A discussion of some of the more challenging aspects for microfinance institutions (MFIs) in working with Kiva. Do lenders really know the “cost of Kiva” to MFIs?
Microfinance and IDPs in Northern Uganda
By James Allman-Gulino, KF11 Uganda
A look into how microfinance and group borrowing can help internally displaced persons (IDPs) and others in post-conflict regions.
New models for Kiva?
By James Allman-Gulino, KF11 Uganda
What’s to be done when entrepreneurs in the developing world face challenges that microloans can’t fix, like poor roads or other lacking public infrastructure?
What do Field Partners do?
Not sure about how the money you lend on Kiva actually gets into the hands of entrepreneurs in the developing world? Learn about Kiva’s Field Partners and the work they do in the field in this post by KF11 fellow James Allman-Gulino.
