Azerbaijan
Compiled by Jim Burke, KF16, Nicaragua
We are Kiva Fellows. This is the stuff we like. Here is an insider (often critical, or satirical but always true!) view of what it means to be a Kiva Fellow and promote access to financial services around the world. From party crashing to bazaars to street food, these are the things we like and thrive on. Check out Stuff Kiva Fellows Like (SKFL) #1-9!
#10 Street Food
Mariela Cedeño, KF16, Cochabamba, Bolivia
I’m not...
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Ecuador
Compiled by Kathrin Gerner, KF16, Rwanda
Meru, Kenya (by Claire Markham)
This week on the Kiva fellows blog, start out by learning about three new microfinance products – microinsurance in Indonesia, higher education loans in the Philippines and green and water loans in Kenya. Continue on to Nepal to admire the handiwork of artisan borrowers. Make your way to Ecuador to find out more about the risk of indebtedness. Share the fellows’ personal...
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Kenya
By Claire Markham, KF16, Kenya
In Kenya, the act of going green appears to be far less of a priority than it is in more developed green economies. In the first part of this blog series, I discussed the cultural barriers that exist in Kenya. In this second part, I attempt to answer the question of how an MFI can break through the obstacles identified in Part 1 to implement a successful green and water loan program. I certainly don’t have all of the answers, but I will describe certain strategies that can be used.
Frame of Reference: Me vs. we, now vs. later...
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Lauren Barra, KF16 Kenya/Tanzania
Last month I had the privilege of attending the African Microfinance Pricing Transparency Leadership Forum in Nairobi. Hosted by MicroFinance Transparency, the conference gathered policymakers and regulators to exchange ideas about client protection and pricing disclosure in microfinance. Attendees included representatives from over 20 nations in East, West and Southern Africa.
African Microfinance Pricing Transparency Leadership...
Cambodia
Compiled by Kathrin Gerner, KF16, Rwanda
Kiva Fellows in East Africa
This week, you have no fewer than 14 new articles to choose from on the Kiva fellows blog: Let the fellows take you along on borrower visits across the world. Learn how Kiva field partners expand the reach of microfinance in Rwanda, fill the microfinance donut hole in Sierra Leone and improve social performance in Uganda. Find out what poverty is like in urban Tajikistan and rural Burkina Faso...
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Lauren Barra, KF16 Kenya
What’s the biggest killer in Kenya? It’s not what you think. One disease is responsible for more deaths than HIV, malaria and measles COMBINED. Diarrhea. That’s right, a troubling inconvenience in the states, diarrhea is a deadly menace in Africa. While victims don’t die from diarrhea directly, the severe dehydration and electrolyte imbalances it causes can be lethal. The most effective way to combat this preventable loss of life is also the simplest – wash your hands.
Only 1 in 10 Kenyan children wash their hands...
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Bolivia
Compiled by Kate Bennett, KF16, Peru
'Want a fresh look at Kiva clients on-the-ground? This week fellows share stories and mixed-media that bring us directly into the cities, homes and pulperías of borrowers. From the marketplace in Bolivia, to the streets of Guayaquil, to the dumps of Kenya, we learn about the challenges of working in...
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By Claire Markham, KF16, Kenya
In the developed world, the recent increased attention to global warming and the importance of environmental preservation and restoration efforts is something that’s hard to ignore. It’s because of this ongoing Environmental Revolution that the majority of the population is aware of the increasing need to pay attention to our footprint. Regardless of whether or not people actually do their part or even believe in global warming, most people have at least been educated of the potential consequences of neglecting the environment and the harm we...
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Compiled by Jim Burke, KF16, Nicaragua
We are Kiva Fellows. This is the stuff we like. Here is an insider (often critical, or satirical but always true!) view of what it means to be a Kiva Fellow and promote access to financial services around the world. From alpaca fur to FSSs to ziplock bags, these are the things we like and thrive on.
#1 Being the first foreign person that somebody has ever seen in their life
Dave Weber, KF16, Cambodia...
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By Claire Markham, KF16, Kenya
Before I arrived in Nairobi, I had heard on multiple occasions about the fundamental role loan officers play in making an MFI function. Loan officers are the backbone of the organization; they are intimately familiar with their clients and the challenges they face and they go to extraordinary measures to meet client needs. I was able to fully appreciate this on my recent borrower visits in Mombasa with two of SMEP Deposit Taking Microfinance Limited’s loan officers: the one who supposedly travels the most, and the one who supposedly travels...
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