I want to invest
in others. Being able to give money to those that need it is great.
There is only one obstacle that is stopping me from this goal - I'm not
rich. My luck! Not having enough money stops me from investing
in others!
Kiva
(kiva.org) allows me to accomplish this goal. It gives me the
opportunity to be a partial investor in a business or businesses. In
their own words,
"Kiva lets you connect with and
loan money to unique small businesses in the developing world. 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."
Let's look at a make believe example.
Carla
lives in Brazil. She makes blankets and want to start a business
selling them. She needs $500 to buy a space and buy shelving for her
store.
Kiva allows you to loan Carla money in
increments of $25.00 You can loan her $25, $50, $100, and so on. Others
can also loan her money.
Carla pays her loan back to Kiva who
in return pays you. There is no interest. This is not a traditional
investment where you make money on the loan.
I think this is a
great idea. However, action talks and bullshit walks! It is easy for me
to write about this organization, but why not put my money where my
mouth is! I made two fifty dollar loans.
I made my first loan
to an electrician in Paraguay. I chose this business because I wanted
my first loan to go to a person from either Central or South America; I
teach many students from Central and South America. I've become close
to the people from these continents. Here's Martin's story.
"Martin
is 45 years old, and married to Bernarda Roja. The couple have three
children: the oldest is 20 years old and is a university student, their
other son is 16 and is studying at middle-school. Their youngest
daughter is 11 and is still in primary school.
In
his youth he worked in the Yacyreta hydro-electric plant, where he was
able to accumulate capital through saving his money through much
personal sacrifice and then establish his own workshop for car
electrics. Now he has 20 years experience in the business. His wife
cares for a store that operates from their own home which also
generates extra income for the family.
One
part of the loan will be used to buy spare parts related to his
business, which can be obtained for a better price if bought in bulk,
and the other part of the loan will be used to purchase merchandise for
the grocery-store. In this way, they will increase the family’s income
and consequently its members quality of life."
My second fifty dollar loan went to a lady in Nigeria. Healthcare is a vital issue. Here is Mrs. Comfort Eseneh story.
"Mrs.
Comfort Eseneh is a 58 year old woman, who has a chemist shop
(pharmacy) for the care of people in her community. She is married with
seven (7) children, and lives in Benin City, Nigeria. She hopes to get
the loan amount of $400 for business improvement, i.e., buying more
drugs for sale. She has been in this business for 2 years."
Kiva has an excellent repayment record. They do thier due diligence. Here's some more info from their site.
This
can be a great school project and a way to teach students about giving.
Teachers can incorporate geography, social studies, and other topics
related to the country where the business person lives.
You
make your payment with a credit card or through your PayPal account. At
the checkout, Kiva will ask if you want to make a 10% donation based on
your loan to them. Kiva takes no money from the loan. All of my $100 is
split between Martin and Mrs. Comfort Eseneh. I donated 10% to Kiva
($10.00 based on my loan).