Subscribe via RSS
Subscribe via EmailMonthly Archives: February 2010
#Mifimon: Microfinance and Higher Education
The following is a guest post from Andres Hammer, an intern at MF Transparency. Our mid-February #mifimon topic was: “microfinance and higher education.” One of the panelists was Chuck Waterfield @chuckwaterfield, who has 25 years of experience in microfinance, is on the faculty of Columbia University/SIPA, and is CEO & president of MicroFinance Transparency. Chuck’s course at SIPA teaches Read more…
Tagged #MifiMon, Alexandra Fiorillo, Chuck Waterfield, Columbia University, Coursework, Education, Higher education, Intern, MFI, Microfinance, MicroFinance Transparency, Professional training, Schools, Social Entrepreneurship, Teaching, Two Dollar Challenge, Undergraduate, University
Opportunity Partners with Two Dollar Challenge: Student Program Makes Poverty a Reality
Opportunity International is pleased to announce our partnership with Two Dollar Challenge (TDC), an organization based out of the University of Mary Washington (UMW) in Fredericksburg, Va. The program, where students live or eat on just $2 per day for one week, raises money for Opportunity Trust Groups in Kenya and Colombia through our peer-to-peer lending website, OptINnow. This initiative Read more…
Tagged College, Colombia, Education, Ending Hunger, Ending Poverty, Fundraising, Hunger, Indiana University, Kenya, ohio northern university, Opportunity International, OptINnow, Poverty, Schools, Students, TDC, Trust Groups, Two Dollar a Day Challenge, Two Dollar Challenge, University, University of Chicago, University of Mary Washington, westminster college, YAO, Young Ambassadors for Opportunity, Youth
Gates and Mastercard Foundations Partner with Opportunity International
In an effort to reach people living in poverty in rural areas, Opportunity International has researched and implemented new products and platforms such as mobile banking, savings services, agricultural finance, cell phone banking, education finance and much more. Because they believe in Opportunity International’s innovative model, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and The MasterCard Foundation Read more…
Ask a Microfinance Expert: Developing a Cost-Benefit Analysis Tool
Microfinance practitioners and microfinance enthusiasts alike agree that the sustainability of microfinance institutions hinges on the success of cost-benefit analysis. Opportunity’s Director of Knowledge Management Estelle Berger recently produced a report on this very topic. She worked with the SEEP Network and USAID to capture and record Opportunity’s experience with developing a cost-benefit analysis tool Read more…
Opportunity International Provides Crucial Support to Microfinance Bank in Haiti
Fonkoze, the largest microfinance organization in Haiti, is being hailed for its distribution of cash more quickly than traditional banks after the earthquake destroyed the country’s banking infrastructure. Opportunity International has been playing a crucial supporting role to Fonkoze in getting the bank up and running after the disaster. After years of struggling to adapt Read more…
Tagged Banking, Earthquake, Fonkoze, Haiti, Innovation, Mobile Banking, Newsweek, Red Cross, Technology
Yes, We Care, Kenya
Capturing the stories of our field staff and clients during our time in Uganda and Kenya inspired us, and we hope it inspires you. While we were having dinner on our final night in Kenya, Ruth-Anne Renaud gave me the idea of starting up a fundraising group at OptINnow.org. It was easy to do, and Read more…
Tagged Build businesses, Children, Education, Ending Poverty, Families, Fundraising, Kenya, Loans, Nutrition, OptINnow, Ruth-Anne, Uganda, We Care Kenya, Women, Women's Opportunity Network, Women's Philanthropy, WON
Ask a Microfinance Expert: M-Banking
The microfinance landscape has changed because of the advent of mobile phone banking technology. With the simple use of a cellular phone, Opportunity clients can check their account balances, transfer money between accounts, send money to other people, pay bills, receive salary or government payments, and buy airtime. If the people cannot come to the Read more…
Tagged IGP Learning Network, Mobile Banking, Mobile Phones, Rural banking, SEEP Network, Technology
