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Conference Breakout: Investing in Half the Sky
The panelists at the breakout session, Investing in Half the Sky. From left to right: Diana Negroponte, Alice Gasatura, Julie Hindmarsh and Ruth-Anne Renaud. The following post by YAO member and Opportunity supporter Sonja Egeland Kelly is one of the many blog posts we published from the 2010 Fall Microfinance Conference. Click here to read all Read more…
Tagged 10000 women initiative, 10k Women, 2010 fall microfinance conference, Africa, alice gasatura, Board of Advisors, Board of Directors, Board of Governors Conference, Children, Community, Conference, Education, Emerging Leaders, emerging leaders program, Ending Poverty, fall microfinance conference, Financial services, Ghana, Goldman Sachs, Half the Sky, Insight Trip, Julie Hindmarsh, Kadita “A.T.” Tshibaka, Kenya, LEAD Campaign, LEAD Initiative, Loan Officer, Loans, Malawi, MFI, Microfinance, Mothers, Mozambique, Nicholas D. Kristof, Opportunity International, Opportunity International Microfinance Conference, Opportunity Rwanda, OptINnow, Poverty, Professional training, Ruth-Anne Renaud, Rwanda, Schools, Sheryl WuDunn, Students, Tanzania, Training, Transformational Training, Trust Groups, Uganda, Women, Women's Opportunity Network, Women's Philanthropy, WON
Conference Breakout: Engaging the Next Generation of Microfinance Champions
The following post by YAO member and Opportunity supporter Sonja Egeland Kelly is one of the many blog posts we published from the 2010 Fall Microfinance Conference. Click here to read all our conference blog posts… Recognizing the importance of inspiring the next generation of microfinance champions, the Young Ambassadors for Opportunity (YAO)[/intlink] breakout session at the Read more…
Tagged 2010 fall microfinance conference, Africa, Conference, Ending Poverty, fall microfinance conference, Financial services, Jump for Opportunity, Liesel Pritzker, Microfinance, Opportunity International, Opportunity International Microfinance Conference, OptINnow, Poverty, Tanzania, YAO, yao-la, Young Ambassadors for Opportunity
LiveBlog: Innovating Technology: Bringing the Bank to the Doorstep of the Poor
“The cell phone has won. Everybody wants a cell phone, and they are at a price point that our customers can afford.” Daryl Skoog, Senior Vice President, Technology, explained how the cell phone is revolutionizing microfinance banking. “These networks enable us to move information locally where we were unable to do that before. We implemented Read more…
Tagged 2010 fall microfinance conference, Africa, biometric technology, Cell phone banking, Daryl Skoog, Ending Poverty, fall microfinance conference, Malawi, MFI, Microfinance, Mobile Phones, Opportunity International, Opportunity International Microfinance Conference, Poverty, Technology
LiveBlog: Advocating on Behalf of Those Who Cannot Advocate for Themselves
Those living in chronic poverty often do not have a voice. Who is here to advocate on behalf of the poor? We are. In the breakout session, “Stand Up for People in Poverty,” an advocacy workshop at Opportunity’s Fall Microfinance Conference, Rev. Jennifer Kottler[/intlink], Director of Policy and Advocacy at Sojourners, reminded us of our Read more…
Tagged 2010 fall microfinance conference, Advocacy, Advocacy and Media, Blogging, fall microfinance conference, Ian Haisley, Opportunity International Microfinance Conference, Political advocacy, Rob Meloche, social advocacy, Social Media, sojourners
Inspiring the next generation of global citizens
Microfinance is a compelling, sustainable, working solution to global poverty. When a woman receives financial services, she sets into motion monumental changes. Family income rises. Children are well fed. Neighbors become employees. Homes are improved. Tuition is within reach. Women, who comprise 85% of our clients, gain status. For Opportunity clients around the world, these Read more…
Tagged Children, Clients, Education, Family, Financial services, Ghana, Global Poverty, Katie Smith Milway, Kojo, Loans, Microfinance, One Hen
Oak Park and River Forest Supporters Gather to Celebrate a Rich Giving History
Last week, a group of Opportunity supporters met together in Maryellen and Jim Betke’s home in Oak Park, Ill. Their common denominator? They are all champions of Opportunity’s microfinance work who live in Oak Park and River Forest, Ill. Over the past 12 months, 80 Opportunity supporters in the Oak Park-River Forest area have raised Read more…
Chicago Microfinance Conference: Can Technology Innovations Transform Microfinance?
At the 6th Annual Chicago Microfinance Conference on Friday, a panel of experts explored the possibilities and pitfalls of ever-changing technology in the microfinance industry. Moderator Preeth Gowdar, Kellogg School of Management, led the session entitled “Getting ‘Techy:’ Can Technology Innovations Transform Microfinance?” Gowdar started out with a story about when he was working in Read more…
Tagged Cell phone banking, CGAP, Chicago Microfinance Conference, Cloud technology, Conference, Expert, George Conrad, Grameen, Grameen Foundation, Intern, John McMahon, Kiva, Microfinance, Mobile Banking, Mobile Phones, Opportunity Rwanda, Rural banking, SalesForce, Sarah Rotman, Scott Bellows, Technology
Celebrating the Board of Governors
With a common passion to help people in the developing world work their way out of poverty, the Opportunity International Board of Governors is a vital ingredient in the fight against global poverty. Numbering over 600 families nationwide, the governors believe that by joining together and supporting the work of Opportunity, they can leverage their Read more…
Opportunity LiveBlog: Banking on Africa
Over 75 percent of people in Africa lives on less than $2 per day. So when Opportunity looked at its expansion plan, Africa was the region that began to take priority. In 2008 Opportunity launched an ambitious campaign to make significant impact on the world’s poorest people in sub-Saharan Africa by 2015. Building upon its Read more…
Opportunity LiveBlog: “I cannot make my payment”
Today conference attendees gathered into groups of 10, and each took on a new identity. They became Opportunity International loan recipients, each with a unique situation. In the middle of the Trust Group simulation, they discovered something challenging: one of the members, Edif, could not pay her loan. The president of each Trust Groups alerted Read more…
