Tag: Kiva

KIVA Loan Program Updates

May 9, 2022 / Faith UCC

Please read below for updates on this loan program that we participate in. Find out more at kiva.org.

More than 1.7 billion people around the world are unbanked and can’t access the financial services they need. Kiva is an international nonprofit, founded in 2005 in San Francisco, with a mission to expand financial access to help underserved communities thrive.

A Borrower Success Story

How one cow changed it all for Neriman

Neriman, Kiva borrower, Turkey — Neriman

ANIMAL HUSBANDRY, TURKEY

Wondering if microloans work? Read on to see the positive impact of a loan for Neriman.

Neriman lives in Turkey with her husband and nine children. The family struggled until she applied for a Kiva loan and used the money to buy a cow. Its milk fed her children and she sold the surplus for extra income—enough to buy more livestock. Now she oversees an animal husbandry business that supports her family and their future.

Opportunity when options are limited

Neriman wanted to contribute to her household, but there are few economic opportunities for women in rural parts of Turkey. Even if formal financial institutions did serve her area, it would have been hard for Neriman to get approved for a bank loan.

“I was told that banks did not give anything to those without an income,” she says.

How a loan changed everything

“After receiving the loan, my life changed,” says Neriman with pride. “I know that I have a job, I have something to work on. I am contributing to my house. I have money.”

Neriman and her husband, Sehmus, continue to thrive in their village and recently were able to pay for their son’s wedding.

Contributing to Kiva loans helps people like Neriman achieve success. For as little as $25, you can make an impact on individual lives around the world.

Want to be a part of someone’s success story?

A Borrower Update from The Phillipines

This update on your loan to Arlene was written by Kiva’s Field Partner.

Dear Kiva Lenders,

Warm Greetings of Peace and Good Health!

The whole world is indeed experiencing a global crisis right now because of the pandemic. As this brings changes and challenges in all area of our lives, we continue to be hopeful in the coming days.

As an organization, CEVI (A Microfinance NGO) in the Philippines continued to fulfill its mission of helping poor families and communities.

CEVI is moved with your generosity, through the loan for Arlene. It has indeed help sustain her livelihood and family’s needs.

Dear Kiva Lenders,

Warm Greetings of Peace and Good Health!

The whole world is indeed experiencing a global crisis right now because of the pandemic. As this brings changes and challenges in all area of our lives, we continue to be hopeful in the coming days.

As an organization, CEVI (A Microfinance NGO) in the Philippines continued to fulfill its mission of helping poor families and communities.

CEVI is moved with your generosity, through the loan for Arlene. It has indeed help sustain her livelihood and family’s needs.

A Borrower Update from Ghana

This update on your loan to Moringa Connect was written by Kiva’s Field Partner.

Dear Kiva Family,

With Mother’s Day around the corner, we have teamed up with candle makers extraordinaire Freres Branchiaux (a Black-owned, family owned fragrance company) to build the perfect gift set for the hardworking mamas in your life in need of some TLC. Each set includes their luxurious This Woman’s Work candle alongside our Rejuvenating Body Polish and Simplicity Moringa Oil.

This Woman’s Work Candle – Set the mood for a luxurious bath routine with this hand-poured organic soy candle. The perfect blend of delicate floral and deep sandalwood and musk, This Woman’s Work is an ode to women everywhere – especially to hard working moms who give their all to make the world a better place for all of us.

Rejuvenating Body Polish – Tough on impurities and gentle on skin, our Rejuvenating Body Polish exfoliates with pure sugar and farmer roasted coffee, brings smooth texture, and restores a brilliant glow to dry and damaged skin. Did we mention it smells like Heaven?

Simplicity Moringa Oil – Seal it all in with our signature moisturizing moringa oil. This multitasking, single origin hero ingredient delivers nutrients deep into the skin and provides long-lasting moisture and glow to face and body.

Best of all, 20% of purchases go toward our True Moringa Scholarship Fund for our women farmers and their families to pursue higher education.

Thanks to your generosity, we have surpassed our initial goal of raising $2000 for the True Moringa Scholarship Fund. These funds will provide 1 year of tuition for 5 scholarship recipients from the community of New Longoro where our farm. We have set a stretch goal to raise an additional $1000 through the fund to support our nursery childcare program by Mother’s Day

You can purchase our Mother’s Day bundle here: https://truemoringa.com/products/mothers-day-gift-set

And donate directly to the scholarship fund here: https://truemoringa.com/products/true-moringa-scholarship-farmers

Happy Mother’s Day & Moringa Love,

Kwami, Emily & Team True Moringa

KIVA Loan Program Update

February 16, 2022 / Faith UCC

As many of you know, Faith Church remains one of the largest funders of micro loans through KIVA for the UCC.

This month, we highlight one of our many loan recipients.

Please continue to pray for and learn more about this amazing ministry of our church and contact Mike Ziegler to discuss how you and your family can help him choose loans to help fund each month!

Moringa Connect’s Story

There are 1.5B acres of fertile, uncultivated land in Africa with 175M subsistence farmers earning less than $2 per day. Moringa is a climate-smart, drought-resistant tree that provides a pathway to economic security. Farmers can earn 4-10x more income by growing moringa. However, they lack access to international markets.

MoringaConnect operates the first vertically integrated moringa business. It produces moringa-based nutrition and natural beauty products for wholesale customers and its own brands (Minga Foods, True Moringa). The team provides Ghanaian farmers with training and then buys their moringa produce at a fair price to increase incomes up to 10x. In 2019, MoringaConnect supported over 5,500 farmers, of whom 38% were female and nearly 75% amongst the poorest 20% in Ghana.

Since their previous loan with Kiva’s Labs: Social Enterprise program, Moringa Connect has launched a 150-acre nucleus farm that employs a cohort of women and vulnerable populations in the community. It is Ghana’s first certified organic nucleus farm and contains the largest solar irrigation project in West Africa.

This loan of $200,000 will be used to finance manufacturing activities and continue purchases of moringa from smallholder farmers in rural Ghana during COVID-related business disruption.

This loan is special because: it provides innovative market access for a superfood ingredient to improve the incomes of
Ghanian farmers.

Hey Kiva Fam,

We’re all about celebrating women and all things made-in-Ghana year-round, but
with International Women’s Day and Ghana Independence Day coinciding with the start of the moringa harvest season this week, we wanted to give you a glimpse behind the scenes of our organic moringa farm.

We proudly source much of our moringa from small farmers that we train and support across Ghana through our “outgrower” farmer model. These farmers typically have experience and access to land.

Our “Ingrower” farmers on the other hand typically lack access to land and
experience growing high value tree crops like moringa. Traditionally, women in many parts of rural Ghana and tribal minorities fall into this category. We offer training, tools, inputs like fertilizer and seeds, and solar powered irrigation to these farmers along with a dedicated plot of land on our organic farm.

Ingrower farmers participate in Village Savings & Loan Association (VSLA) groups run by a member of our True Moringa Farmer Outreach Team. These powerful circles of women meet regularly to save the income they earn growing moringa and other crops and lend their savings to individual members to invest in their farms and businesses. For each $1 we invest in organizing and facilitating these groups, $10 is generated through savings and loans.

Today, our organic farm creates 50 jobs and is home to over one million moringa trees & the largest solar-powered irrigation system in West Africa. We’ve got a lot of exciting projects in the works on the farm – stay tuned for updates throughout the planting season!

Celebrate with us & enjoy the fruits of the farm – use code INDEPENDENCE for 20% off this week: truemoringa.com/discount/INDEPENDENCE.

Moringa Love,
Kwami, Emily & Team True Moringa

Kiva: Update on our loan to Cotzi Ya Group

August 1, 2021 / Faith UCC

Submitted by Frank Dietz

This update on our loan to Cotzij Ya Group was written by Kiva’s Field Partner.

The 37-year-old Flora’s leadership grows daily. She seeks to consolidate the Mayan women of her community through typical weavings. She comments that when the woman weaves she occupies her mind, her hands and her spirit. That is why each typical “girdle” or belt that Flora weaves has her essence. She wants all weaving women to sell her products well. So Flora employs two people to support her in weaving typical belts that are in fashion. She says that if women weave and sell their products, they will be able to meet their basic needs and there will be fewer malnourished children. That is why last November, Flora acquired the fifth loan with Kiva. She was effectively able to capitalize on her textile business by purchasing a large quantity of high-quality yarns in various colors. Now Flora generates more income that allows her to continue supporting her parents and her 6 younger siblings.

The eight women from the “Cotzij Ya” Communal Bank continue to prepare through training provided by the “Microcredit Plus” program for loans, non-formal education and health services. They not only benefited from a Kiva loan, but also benefited greatly from training in financial, health, women, and family issues. They now know their rights, but also their obligations as wives and mothers. A nurse from the institution visited their homes every two months and performed Pap tests, blood pressure, height and weight. Flora and her companions were also informed about the importance of vaccination to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Thanks to these educational topics, the women of this communal bank acquire more knowledge that allows them to develop their capacities.

Kiva Lender, the more than 32,000 clients of Puente de Amistad, achieve their goals thanks to each one of you.

KIDS & YOUTH—Help Us Loan Money April 14th at 6:00pm

March 30, 2021 / Faith UCC

KIDS & YOUTH—did you know that you have $1,406.71?! We need your help spending it.

Through your tithes and offerings your church has loaned $63,125 to people from 85 countries, through the KIVA microloan lending program, to help them start and run businesses and bring more financial health and freedom to themselves, their families, and communities.

As they pay us back the money they’ve borrowed from us, we re-invest that money in other people. We currently have $1,406.71 to loan to others, and we want our young ones’ help deciding to whom we should loan our support next.

PARENTS—We want to help teach our young about mission, about the plight of others less financially fortunate than us in the U.S. and around the world, how money and lending work, what a big difference every little bit they do for others can make, and how good it feels to work with God by serving God’s kids.

We also want to help them engage with their pastor and other grownups in the congregation to help them feel connected with their greater Faith Family, and we need your help, as well!

Bring your kiddos and join me, Mike Ziegler, and Frank Dietz on Wednesday, April 14^th at 6:00 pm for 30 to 45 minutes max as we demonstrate the KIVA program to you and your kids and get their help making our next round of loans.

If it’s dinner time or happy hour in your household, bring the merlot (for you) and the mac and cheese (for the kids of for you, we won’t judge) and join any way.

This will be an informal Faith Family time as we love on your kids, on you, and teach us all a bit more about serving God by caring for and supporting our human family with a hand up, rather than a handout. We hope to see you, there!

Peace,
Pastor Carla