My last post mentioned Kiva, and their microlending program. I have mentioned them before in another post too. The thing is I love what they’re doing. That whole ‘teach a man to fish’ deal. I think it’s great. Helping people who are trying their best to help themselves, but need a little boost.

I have made three loans so far. One has been totally repaid; which probably means the lady I gave it to has done well in her venture! One is in progress, and one is still awaiting more funding. My loan locations were to Ghana, Peru, and El Salvador.

Ghana – A Grandmother trying to expand her hardware store. ($675)
Peru – A woman who has already taken, and repaid several loans to grow her business successfully. ($375)
El Salvador – Another grandmother who runs a food stand, but needs funds for more product. ($500)

The amount in parenthesis is the total amount requested that has been funded to them by any number of helpful charity lenders. I only gave $25 but it was one of the last little bits needed to fund the whole loan.

The best part I think is that the money comes back to you. So, you can give it again. That means the same $25 could help countless people instead of just one person.

These people are all hard working individuals with businesses that they have built over the years. They have children, grand children, and are trying to get ahead. That’s hard when you don’t have much money. The majority of the loans are requested for the ability to expand. Usually materials they need to do their jobs.

I’ve added an ‘I’m a loaner button” to the side bar. You can check out my original Kiva post here if you’d like.

You can also check out Kiva’s website here!

Good luck in all that you do.

Originally posted 2010-08-05 23:11:48. Republished by Blog Post Promoter