Fellows Blog

Stories from the field

Stories tagged with Bolivia

Oct 10, 2011 BO Bolivia

By Mariela Cedeño, KF16, Bolivia.

Every time I walk into one of CIDRE’s offices in Bolivia, I always stop and take a look at their street sign. I’m not sure why, it’s a weird habit that reminds me of where I am, who I am working with, and the amazing opportunity that has been afforded to me as a Kiva Fellow. This past week, however, when walking into one of CIDRE’s branch offices I thought to myself, “I see this sign and I know that it means ‘loans available here’, but how do entrepreneurs know that they can get...

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Oct 10, 2011 BO Bolivia

Eric Rindal – KF16 – La Paz, Bolivia

Another day, another dollar lost as a volunteer. The first part of my second Fellowship has gone by tremendously fast. I only have two more months left of what will be my seven months as a Kiva Fellow. No longer do I feel like a volunteer, this is now my way of life. At this juncture, after leaving Sierra Leone and entering Bolivia, I ask three questions: Why micro loans; Why small business; and Why poverty.

As a Fellow these questions encapsulate most of what I think about. In short, I want to know why things are...

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Oct 10, 2011 BO Bolivia

Compiled by Jim Burke, KF16, Nicaragua

We are Kiva Fellows. This is the stuff we like. Here is an insider (often critical, or satirical but always true!) view of what it means to be a Kiva Fellow and promote access to financial services around the world. From alpaca fur to FSSs to ziplock bags, these are the things we like and thrive on.

#1 Being the first foreign person that somebody has ever seen in their life

Dave Weber, KF16, Cambodia...

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Oct 10, 2011 BO Bolivia

By Mariela Cedeño, KF16, Bolivia.

“Banking the unbankable“ has always been my favorite nomenclature attached to the microcredit movement that has gained such strong momentum in recent years. When feeling more long-winded, I like to describe microcredit as a useful poverty alleviation tool (a piece of the pie) by which those that have been traditionally left out of the formal banking sector can access capital to help grow their enterprises. Though it’s difficult to measure exactly how many...

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Sep 9, 2011 BO Bolivia

Eric Rindal – KF16 – Bolivia

After Jeffrey Sachs  started talking about ladders, rungs, and poverty, many wondered if there would be an end to poverty. The way he saw it was that if a developing country could just make it to that first “rung” on the ladder, they would reach the global economy and lift themselves from poverty. He augmented this with “clinical economics,” treating developing countries like patients by offering a unique diagnosis, by properly addressing a country’s need. I am not going to analyze Sachs’ book, rather I will compare the differences...

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May 5, 2011 BO Bolivia

By Nila Uthayakumar, KF14, Uganda, 

With the help of several other Fellows in the field

Borrowers of an MCDT solidarity group meet under the shade of a tree in Kampala, Uganda.

I’ve met all kinds of borrowers. From age 16 to 76; from orphans to a former beauty queen; from potato sellers to auto parts saleswomen to motorcycle transportation tycoons. I’ve met them in urban slums, in villages, in homes, on porches, in...

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May 5, 2011 AM Armenia

Compiled by Alexis Ditkowsky

Transportation is an apt topic when so many Fellows are saying goodbye (Sierra Leone pictured)

We’ve officially hit the point in the Kiva Fellows cycle where the current batch says goodbye just as the latest group is getting their bearings at Kiva HQ. Fortunately, there are a number of posts this week to help us through the transition and cheer us up. If you’re interested in a comprehensive image gallery of the hot...

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Apr 4, 2011 BO Bolivia

Clara Vreeken, KF 14, Bolivia

Clara volunteered as Kiva Fellow in Bolivia. She worked for the micro finance institutions IMPRO, Pro Mujer and Emprender. In this blog she elaborates on health issues in Bolivia – Bolivians prefer to drink herbal tea and listen to witch doctors instead of seeing a doctor – and she says goodbye as the end of her Kiva Fellowship has arrived.

Bolivian people prefer to drink a herbal tea (maté) than going to a doctor.  The herbal tea here in Bolivia is delicious, however it does not cure you from all diseases. Therefore the Bolivian micro...

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Apr 4, 2011 AM Armenia

Compiled by Alexis Ditkowsky

Kiva Fellows celebrated Earth Day around the world (Rwanda pictured)

Kiva Fellows observed Earth Day by sharing projects initiated by their partner microfinance institutions and host countries and by celebrating Kiva.org’s first batch of “Green Loans”. The upbeat mood also extended to anniversary parties at MFIs in Jordan and Armenia, enthusiastic endorsements to travel to Colombia, and reporting on a great...

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Apr 4, 2011 AM Armenia

Compiled by Caree Edson, KF 14, Armenia

One of the unfortunate sight-seeing adventures that you never sign up for when you travel (especially in developing countries) is the unseemly amount of trash cluttering the otherwise beautiful landscapes. In Armenia, it isn’t possible to see the horizon through the smog most days and the streets are covered in cigarette butts and litter. I found no exceptions to this as I inquired from other Kiva Fellows about the dire situation in their countries. Environmental education and reform are simply not a top priority in many countries....

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