Draft

loans that change lives

Kiva
Loans That Change Lives
www.kiva.org
Yenku Sesay: Survival to Success Draft

Yenku Sesay is a 30 year old

Sierra Leonean

In 2006 rebel soldiers cut off his

hands as punishment for voting

When he was 21 years old,

Yenku was a double amputee,
whose only prospects were
begging in the streets of
Freetown

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Yenku Sesay: Survival to Success Draft

Yenku was approached by a

microfinance institution

The microfinance institution encouraged

Yenku to take a loan of 300,000 Leones
(about $100) to start a small business

Yenku sold soap, biscuits and small

items for a small profit

As Yenku made a profit, he reinvested it into the business

Yenku now supports his family of three children, and even

pays for his younger brother’s schools fees

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Hand up, not a hand out Draft

Materials for making products

Yenku’s story is not unique

Millions of people around the world could
help themselves if they just had access to
money for starting or expanding their small
business Tools for carpentry Supplies for a store

Whether they need tools, seed, fertilizer,

cloth, store supplies, it just takes that first
step, that start-up capital, to give them a
chance to be truly self-sufficient
However they cannot apply for a loan from Cloth for weaving Seed for crops
a bank, credit company or credit co-
operative because banks typically do not
serve the poor

4
Introduction to Microfinance Draft

Microfinance is the provision of financial services to the poor

The poor are typically excluded by financial service providers:
• No collateral
• No credit history
• Illiteracy
The poor need financial services, and already use them informally:
• Borrowing money from loan sharks with interest rates so high
that it may be impossible to ever pay back
For many in the developing world, savings
• Savings accounts kept in the home, vulnerable to theft accounts take the form of livestock

• Investing in livestock which is vulnerable to disease

Microfinance works to provide the poor with these financial services, in a

safe and controlled environment, through a microfinance institution

Give
Give aa man
man aa fish,
fish, feed
feed him
him for
for aa day.
day.
Teach
Teach aa man
man to
to fish,
fish, feed
feed him
him for
for aa lifetime.
lifetime.
What
What ifif he
he knows
knows how
how toto fish,
fish,
but
but just
just can’t
can’t afford
afford aa fishing
fishing net?
net?

5
Microfinance Institutions Draft

There are thousands of microfinance institutions around

the world, and they all vary a little depending on the
region they are in and people they are targeting to help

•• Some
Some focus
focus on women in
on women in places
places where
where women
women don’t
don’t have
have
the
the same
same rights
rights as as men
men and
and so
so have
have no
no economic
economic
empowerment
empowerment
•• Some
Some focus
focus onon the
the rural population in
rural population in areas
areas where
where
people
people are
are isolated
isolated and
and cannot
cannot travel
travel to
to cities
cities to
to access
access
services
services
•• Some
Some focus
focus onon aa comprehensive
comprehensive programprogram whichwhich
includes
includes business
business training
training with
with financial
financial products
products

What ties them all together, however, is a desire to help the

poor by providing them with financial services

6
The Traditional Microfinance Lending Process Draft

Banks and
NGOs
• Microfinance institutions typically get the money that they
lend, from banks or non-governmental organizations, or both
• This can be expensive, as it is often borrowed with interest
• There may also be difficult application procedures to access
debt capital from non-governmental organizations
• Some organizations can even find themselves shut out due
to the region they operate in, particularly post-conflict regions

Microfinance
Institutions

• Restrictions that microfinance institutions face ultimately affect the

entrepreneurs, who rely on microfinance institutions to serve them

Entrepreneurs

7
The Kiva Microfinance Lending Process Draft

You!

With Kiva, you can be micro-lender

You can act as a banker and provide
the funds to microfinance institutions
that they then lend to entrepreneurs

Microfinance
Institutions

Entrepreneurs

8
www.kiva.org Draft

Kiva.org is a website
which allows you to
lend as little as $25 to
an entrepreneur in the
developing world who
needs a loan

9
www.kiva.org Draft

The Kiva website lists

loan requests which you
can browse, just like
browsing items on eBay
or another website

10
www.kiva.org Draft

Each loan request

has a business page
which gives you more
information about
the loan…

11
www.kiva.org Draft

Size
Size of
of the
the loan
loan
Picture
Picture of
of the
the and
and status
status
entrepreneur
entrepreneur
Summary
Summary of of the
the
business
business andand
loan,
loan, including
including
when
when itit is
is
expected
expected to to bebe
Description
Description ofof the
the paid
paid back
back
business
business and
and
what
what the
the loan
loan will
will
be
be used
used for
for Information
Information onon
the
the microfinance
microfinance
institution
institution which
which
isis managing
managing thethe
loan
loan on
on the
the
ground
ground

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www.kiva.org Draft

The
The business
business page
page
also
also shows
shows you you all
all of
of
the
the other
other people
people
around
around thethe world
world
who
who are
are contributing
contributing
to
to this
this loan
loan

13
Kiva’s Lenders Draft

340,000 lenders
from 135 countries

have loaned $45million

in just three years

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Kiva’s Borrowers Draft

92,000
From Africa, Asia, borrowers in
Eastern Europe, Middle three years
East, South America and
Central America
Repayment
rate of over
98%

Nearly 80%
are women
Working in Retail,
Farming, Construction,
Education and many
Average loan other sectors
size of $450

15
Kiva’s Microfinance Partners Draft

Kiva has 90 Microfinance Partners in 42 countries and is still growing

Ukraine
Moldova Mongolia
Bosnia & Azerbaijan
Herzegovina Bulgaria Tajikistan

Lebanon Iraq Afghanistan

Nepal
Mexico Haiti Dominican Republic Pakistan
Mali
Guatemala Senegal Vietnam
Honduras Sudan
Togo Nigeria
El Salvador Sierra Leone Cambodia
Nicaragua Cameroon
Ghana Benin Uganda
Ecuador Kenya
Congo Rwanda Indonesia
Tanzania
Peru
Mozambique
Bolivia
Samoa Paraguay

16
Kiva in the Press Draft

The
The organization
organization has
has received
received aa
lot
lot of
of attention
attention in
in the
the press,
press, as
as
more
more people
people learn
learn about
about this
this new
new
and
and unique
unique way
way toto give
give back
back

17
What others are saying… Draft

“…a positive alternative

to conflict.”

“An eBay for Microfinance”

“(One of) Ten things that will

change your future”

“Peace through PayPal?”

18
Kiva is… Draft

Kiva is the world’s first microlending website

Kiva’s mission is to connect people, through
lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty
With Kiva, you can become a micro-lender to
people like Yenku who just need a hand up

Kiva allows
Real People
to make a
Real Difference
in the lives of the poor

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 Draft

loans that change lives

www.kiva.org
Loans that Change Lives