I just made a loan to someone in the developing world using a revolutionary new website called Kiva. Kiva is a system based on that developed by Muhammad Yunus, who just won the Nobel Peace Prize.
You can go to Kiva's website and lend to someone in the developing world who needs a loan for their business - like raising goats, selling vegetables at market or making bricks. Each loan has a picture of the entrepreneur, a description of their business and how they plan to use the loan so you know exactly how your money is being spent - and you get updates letting you know how the business is going.
The best part is, when the entrepreneur pays back their loan you get your money back - and Kiva's loans are managed by microfinance institutions on the ground who have a lot of experience doing this, so you can trust that your money is being handled responsibly.
I just made a loan to an entrepreneur named José Solórzano in Ecuador.
It's finally easy to actually do something about poverty - using Kiva I know exactly who my money is loaned to and what they're using it for. And most of all, I know that I'm helping them build a sustainable business that will provide income to feed, clothe, house and educate their family long after my loan is paid back.
Join me in changing the world - one loan at a time at www.kiva.org
1 comment:
Hi Rainking,
Thank you for posting about your experiences with Kiva. You are an inspiring example to your community. You have shown that one does not have to be a Nobel Peace Prize winner to make a difference in healing the world. We are excited about how lenders and borrowers are now engaging in deeper dialogue through our social networking capability. By making your profile public, you can allow others to see your loan portfolio, loan statuses and even a mini bio/link to blog. Imagine the next comment on your blog being from Jose in Ecuador! Thanks for your support!
Regards,
Tim (volunteer with Kiva.org)
tim@kivavolunteers.org
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