Kiva: making a difference

Last Christmas, my cousin Steve gave me a $25 Kiva gift certificate/credit in our gift exchange. Kiva is a service that lets you connect with and loan money to unique small businesses in the developing world. From their About page:

"By choosing a business on Kiva.org, you can 'sponsor a business' and help the world's working poor make great strides towards economic independence. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates from the business you've sponsored. As loans are repaid, you get your loan money back."



The photo at the top of the page is of Joseph Kamau, whose small business is the one I decided to sponsor. The description on his page read:

"Joseph Kamau is a 45 years old father of three children. Two of his children are in school while one is not yet in school because Kamau is unable to raise the high school fees at the moment. Kamau owns a one acre piece of land in Nyandarwa District of Central Kenya where he has been growing maize. The land size is small to produce profitable harvest and he lacks sufficient capital to finance quality farming. Kamau wants to diversify into dairy farming which requires less land and is more profitable. He is requesting a loan of US $ 1,600 to purchase two dairy cows. This will enable him keep all his children in school and save enough to expand the business. He will be able to repay the loan."

I Blathered about this briefly in January and didn't expect much follow-up. So many businesses go under, after all, and my $25 seemed so tiny in comparison to the amount that Mr. Kamau needed.

To my surprise, however, I've been getting regular updates throughout the year. I just got one today saying that Mr. Kamau had made another repayment (of $100). In total, he's repaid $1,000 and has $600 more to go. Clicking through to my "loan portfolio page" on Kiva, I can see a full schedule of the repayments that he's made, a list of the other lenders (you can remain anonymous if you wish) and where they're from, and a journal entry on behalf of Mr. Kamau.



When my loan is fully repaid, the $25 is put back into my credit and I can either withdraw it or choose another small business to which I can lend money. Yes, it's only a small amount but it's clear that every little bit helps. I'm also enjoying checking in on Mr. Kamau from time to time throughout the year.

When you're doing your holiday shopping, do consider Kiva. It's an unusual gift, keeps on "giving" through the year, and it's very cool to know that even a small thing like a $25 loan can help make a difference in someone's life.



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