Kiva Fellows Blogs - some excellent stuff recently

[Guest]

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[Diane R]

Wonderful new post from Teresa Dunbar...
Diane, did you ever run into her food stall in San Francisco

Jan, thanks for posting, what a wonderful outcome for Teresa, and lucky Oikocredit!  I don't recall having seen her food stall, it sounds yummy... but sadly coconut sticky rice and I would have major internal disagreements (and that's probably more than I should have said already... heh).

It's heartening to know that sometimes the good folks do rise to the top. 

--Diane.

[Jan & John]

This new Fellows Blog, PADECOMSM & El Salvador’s Civil war is so quietly written but I felt myself drawn into the words and admiring the birth and growth of PADECOMSM's mission of rebuilding their country. 

It is easy to forget the essential role that field partners, like PADECOMSM Credito, have in Kiva’s mission. But without them, it is unlikely that any of us would be able to give our support to the entrepreneurs of this war torn region.

This is after all, why we are here at Kiva, when we could be out enjoying the spring rains

-jan-

[Diane R]

On Friday May 21st, 2010 you should be able to find PADECOMSM Credito’s field partner page and start find borrowers whom you can support.

That would be today -- I'll be refreshing the Partners page and watching for # 161 (assuming the numbers are assigned sequentially...).

EDIT: Whoops, they're Partner #167!

--Diane.

[cjp1973]

That would be today -- I'll be refreshing the Partners page and watching for # 161 (assuming the numbers are assigned sequentially...).

--Diane.

They are up and waiting to be funded.  not big at all, hurry  http://www.kiva.org/lend?partner_id=167&status=fundRaising&sortBy=New+to+Old

[waywardcats]

Some excellent musings on the value of microfinance today from KF Drew Loizeaux

Happy Entrepreneurs and Harsh Accusations: Conversations about Microfinance

and an example of the girl effect and classic microfinance in action from KF Chris Baker

Cutting Out the (Middle) Man in Kathmandu

-Kerry-

[waywardcats]

It’s the Little Things that Count

by Matt Raimondi, KF11

My favorite quote:

One of the greatest things I came away with from my Kiva Fellowship is the importance of having an open mind.  Life happens (good and bad), every experience is an opportunity to learn.  An open mind is like a key to the world.  It allows you to make the most of every experience and enables you to learn and grow as a person.

[waywardcats]

The Working Poor vs The Unbanked.

by Drew Loizeaux, KF11, Uganda

Many times, poor and unbanked are synonymous, but other times they are not and it is important to recognize the difference between the two and how each group can help a community.  To illustrate this point I want to introduce you to Fred.



Fred is does not fall into the category of “working poor”. He owns a fairly large carpentry shop and is currently running for mayor in his village (see picture for his campaign poster). Despite owning a very successful business, in the past, finding outside funding for his business had been difficult because his village is hours away from any major town. However, a Hofokam loan officer now serves his area and Fred has been receiving loans for about two years now. Read the rest of this blog entry here.

[waywardcats]

The next best thing to being there...

The Last Mile

By Frederic Billou, KF13, Benin

The “last mile” is one of the most discussed topics when debating microfinance:  No matter how optimized and efficient a microfinance institution may be,  developing countries are still very much cash-based  and loan officers have to cover the “last mile” to physically reach borrowers , disburse funds, collect repayments and build and maintain a close relationship over time. As such, this “last mile” is one of the largest expenses for many microfinance institutions reaching rural borrowers.

Here is one of my recent “last mile” experiences working with ALIDe, Kiva’s partner in Benin:

First, a 30mn moto taxi ride to the office:

From there, it was a 1.5 hour motorcycle ride. We of course had to stop for gas, a bottle at a time.

And then came the last mile, literally. The loan officer I was with mentioned that there was a shortcut via the “bas fond” (the swamp) that would save us at least 30mn, but that it might be a bit scary for me. I pleaded my case quickly:

    * I used to own a motorcycle and am not easily scared.
    * After riding on the rear mudguard for 1.5 hours  on dirt roads with potholes the size of a cow, any shortcut sounded really, really, really good! (dirt bike = no real back seat to speak of)

So, about that shortcut…Enterprising folks in the village had basically tossed a bunch of sand bags in the swamp to create some sort of path. However, before we could try out this clever piece of engineering,  we had to deal with a typical “African rope”: a rope was blocking access to the path and three guys were collecting money. I am used to this routine by now: it involves a bunch of guys with nothing better to do than collecting/stealing cash from passers-by to finance their own supply of cigarettes etc. Some of these guys can be pretty aggressive, while others can be easily handled with a “I will pay on the way back…”  if they are drunk/high enough already, or maybe simply in a good mood. To date, I had always managed to get past these ropes without paying.

This time though, everyone was paying without arguing at all.  It turns out that this was a legitimate toll booth, collecting funds to pay for additional sand bags and overall “maintenance”. The toll was 100 Francs, i.e. 20 cents US or about the price of a loaf of bread.

Enjoy the ride! (warning: this was a *very* bumpy last mile.)



And we finally reached our destination!

That “last mile” from the ALIDe office to that single borrower took about 3 hours and the monthly repayment from this borrower is about $11 USD…

[waywardcats]

MLK Jr., Xenophobia, Immigration, and Microcredit

by Rachel Gittinger, KF13, Costa Rica

Today, we honor Martin Luther King Jr., a man who stood for justice and equality in face of great adversity.  We are reminded that despite progress since the civil rights movement, both the USA and the world continue to face xenophobia and other divisive forces.  Fundación Mujer demonstrates that microcredit can be one tool that effectively counters these challenges and offers opportunity to the oppressed.

Costa Rica is a country known for keeping the peace. In fact, they are often referred to as the “Switzerland of the Americas”.   In 1948 the army was abolished and military spending was directed into social programs such as education. Today, Costa Rica has one of the highest literacy rates in Central America, at 94.9% (CIA World Factbook).  This, among other historical characteristics, has allowed Costa Rica a development unique to that of its Central American neighbors.  For example, as peace-loving social democracy, Costa Rica was spared some of the bitter wars and American involvement that plagued many other countries in Central America during the 70s and 80s.   However, the news is not all positive.  Costa Rica’s black population still faces discrimination.  In fact, they were not bestowed citizenship until 1948.  Limón, the Caribbean province where the black population is concentrated, remains the poorest province in Costa Rica.  Racial slurs and xenophobia are still quite common, both towards the blacks and other minority populations, such as Nicaraguan immigrants.

In 2010 Costa Rica had a GDP per capita of $11,400 compared to a mere $2,900 in Nicaragua. (CIA World Factbook)  This economic disparity has created a transnational migration.  Currently, there are an estimated 300,000-500,000 Nicaraguans, both legal and illegal, working in Costa Rica. (CIA)  Nicaraguans continue to arrive in search of work, hope, and opportunity in Costa Rica.  Some come for seasonal work such as produce harvesting, while others are here to stay.  This seems to be the limit to Costa Rica’s tolerance.  These workers, legal or not,  are often abused, forced to take jobs paying well below the minimum wage, and work under conditions that no Costa Rican would consider accepting. They were once welcomed, but recent economic struggles have prompted Costa Ricans to accuse Nicaraguans of stealing jobs and over-burdening the welfare system in search of health and education services.  Sound familiar?  Nicaraguans face the same issues that plague the Latino immigrants crossing the border into the United States.

Microcredit institutions in both countries can help to level the playing field.  Here in Costa Rica, Fundación Mujer does not discriminate based on nationality, and many of their clients are hard-working Nicaraguan immigrants.  One success story in particular is that of Doña Emelina. In 1987 she arrived in Costa Rica, desperate for a doctor capable of diagnosing and curing the illness that plagued her 4 year old son.  Emelina arrived in Costa Rica with nothing and she began working as a seamstress to provide for her two children and pay the medical bills.  She eventually solicited a loan from Fundación Mujer to expand her business. She has received 5 micro-loans. Today, her son is healthy and designs clothing for the business.  She recently received an international contract to produce the uniforms for a Central American department store and employs between 7 and 10 workers.  She hopes that the training and work that she provides will allow each of her employees with both the means and inspiration to reach their own life goals.

Martin Luther King Jr. dedicated his life to advocating for a social climate that allowed each individual the opportunity to pursue their dreams.  Neither politics nor personal attack changed his convictions about the dignity of humanity, and the rights of each individual to be treated with respect.  Costa Rica currently faces the same challenge.  Since November, an ongoing border dispute with Nicaragua has threatened the peace, and caused a surge in racism towards Nicaraguan immigrants.  It is leadership of just individuals and institutions, such as Fundacion Mujer, that counters this racism and continues to treat these immigrants with the respect, dignity, and opportunity that they deserve.



Emelina employs at least 5 other young workers and hopes that the experience empowers them to pursue their dreams.