Blog Archives

#MifiMon: Women and Microfinance

By Guest Post on December 2, 2009

The following is a guest post by Sheethal Shobowale, Kiva Fellow at MFIs Asociación Arariwa in Cusco, Peru and Emprender in La Paz, Bolivia starting in January. Interested in learning about microfinance? Follow our biweekly Twitter discussion group #mifimon (because Microfinance Mondays was too long for Twitter’s 140-character limit). Our aim is to host an Read more…

Posted in Loans, Our Mission and Vision, Our Work, Training, Trust Groups, Women's Opportunity Network
Tagged #MifiMon, Accion, Clients, Community, Community development, Education, Entrepreneurs, Equal opportunity, Gender equality, Group lending, Healthcare, Kiva, Lending Laws, Loan Officers, Loans, MFI, Microfinance, Savings, Seven Bar Foundation, Social Performance Indicators Blog, The Next 4 Billion, Training, Trust Groups, Twitter, WAM, Women, Women Advancing Microfinance, Women's Opportunity Network, Women's Philanthropy, WON

World AIDS Day: Lending Hope to Africa

By Sonja Egeland Kelly on December 1, 2009

AIDS continues to devastate sub-Saharan Africa. Thirty million people have died already, leaving 14 million orphans behind. Without decisive action, millions more will die, at the rate of over 6,600 a day. This figure is likely to increase because of the 9,500 new daily infections in Africa alone. Today marks World AIDS Day. The day Read more…

Posted in Loans, Our Mission and Vision, Training, Trust Groups, Where We Work
Tagged Africa, AIDS, Crisis, Dorothy Kanjautso, Education, HIV/AIDS, Loans, Opportunity International, Orphans, Poverty, Training, Trust Groups, Women, World Aids Day

Spotlight from the Field: Maria Felix Gallardo Hernandez

By Sonja Egeland Kelly on October 22, 2009

Pots bubble, bread rises, and tortillas simmer as Maria does what she does every day: builds a better life for her family. And makes plans expand her business. And dreams of enrolling herself in school for the first time. If you were to ask Maria how old she is, she would reply (nonchalantly), “Sesenta y Read more…

Posted in Loans, Our Mission and Vision, Our Work, Where We Work, Women's Opportunity Network
Tagged Chapala, Children, Client Stories, Clients, Education, Entrepreneurs, Mexico, Trust Groups, Women

Live: A Report from Opportunity’s Colombia Staff #BOG09

By Sonja Egeland Kelly on October 3, 2009

Jim Frantz and Olga Perez have dedicated their lives to serving the poor. Working at our bank in Opportunity Colombia, they see triumph and heartbreak. Their story today was one of transformation. Colombia is an exciting place for microfinance. With almost 50% of Colombians living below the poverty line, and with so many displaced people, Read more…

Posted in Loans, Our Work, Training, Trust Groups
Tagged #BOG09, Board of Governors, Client Stories, Clients, Colombia, Jim Frantz, Loan Officer, Microfinance, Olga Perez, Opportunity Colombia, Trust Groups

Live: Daryl Skoog and his Motorbike #BOG09

By Sonja Egeland Kelly on October 3, 2009

Opportunity is introducing electric bikes as transportation for loan officers who have to travel a long distance to see their clients each day. When the conference moderator announced the break-out sessions this morning, the doors swung wide open and Vice President of MIS Daryl Skoog revved his engine and rode in on a motorbike. It was a Read more…

Posted in Our Work, Rural Outreach, Technology, Trust Groups
Tagged #BOG09, ATMs, biometrics, Conference, container banks, Daryl Skoog, Loan Officer, Microfinance, MIS, mobile branches, Opportunity International, Rural banking, satellite communications, Savings, Technology, Transportation, Trust Groups

Insight Trip: Rwanda Day 4 – AJ Renold

By AJ Renold on September 29, 2009

This post is a part of an on-going series from members of the . It shares their stories as they travel from the United States to Tanzania and Rwanda. Today we visited Opportunity Rwanda’s bank branch in Nyamata, about a 45-minute drive from Kigali. When we arrived, we were greeted by three who had been Read more…

Posted in Insight Trips, Young Ambassadors for Opportunity
Tagged Children, Client Stories, Clients, Education, Insight Trip, Loans, Mobile Phones, Opportunity Rwanda, Rwanda, Tanzania, Trust Groups, YAO, Young Ambassadors for Opportunity

For Some, “Back to School” is Easier Said than Done

By Andrew Koehler on September 17, 2009

It’s that time of the year again. Children all across America are heading back to school, a sometimes chaotic, but relatively uncomplicated task for families. Unfortunately, “back to school” isn’t so simple for many children living in impoverished communities around the world where schools, money and transportation are sparse. Jacqueline Syokwaa is the owner of Read more…

Posted in Events, OptINnow, Our Work
Tagged Back to School, Children, Education, Fundraising, Kenya, Nairobi, OptINnow, Trust Groups

Twestival: Social Media Enables Social Change

By Guest Post on September 16, 2009

Guest Post written by Kaitlyn Davidson: What’s this Twitter stuff all about? If you have a Twitter account (millions of you do), and you want to engage in social change, then Twitter may have just the event for you. Twestival Local, or Twitter-Festival, is an event that unites Twitter users offline to have a Read more…

Posted in Events, OptINnow
Tagged Chicago, Children, Education, Fundraising, Jacqueline Syokwaa, Kenya, Loans, Nairobi, Opportunity International, Social Media, Trust Groups, Twestival, Twitter

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