50 Weeks of Opportunity
Each week for the next 50 weeks, we will share a piece of Opportunity’s history—major or minor, sobering or inspiring, we have gotten where we are today by facing some of the world’s greatest challenges, with you by our side. Please join us in celebrating the many impactful moments that have built the foundation on which we will embark on our most audacious vision yet: ending extreme poverty.
Nine lives in the world's largest refugee camp
As we move into fall, the Opportunity Book Club is turning to a nonfiction book that will open our eyes to the plight of refugees in the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya. This month, join us this month as we read the incredible stories in City of Thorns by Ben Rawlence. “Situated hundreds of miles from any other settlement, deep within the inhospitable desert of northern Kenya where only thorn bushes grow, Dadaab is a city like no other,” Amazon’s book description…
Read MoreFacing a Global Hunger Crisis
Last week, the Associated Press, citing recent UN research, reported, “All around the world, the coronavirus and its restrictions are pushing already hungry communities over the edge, cutting off meager farms from markets and isolating villages from food and medical aid. Virus-linked hunger is leading to the deaths of 10,000 more children a month over the first year of the pandemic, according to an urgent call to action from the United Nations.” Over 100,000 children will die because…
Read MoreGovernors Spotlight: Promod Haque
Promod and Dorcas Haque understand firsthand how an opportunity can change one’s life. As the daughter of missionary American parents, Dorcas spent her formative childhood years in rural, northwest Congo. While she and her siblings had the opportunity to pursue tertiary education and a sustainable career, many of her neighbors did not. For Promod, after graduating from university in India and accepted to Northwestern University for a master’s degree, he was denied scholarship or financial aid.…
Read MoreLives Lived Well
Learn about how John and Jacque Weberg are impacting families for generations to come through their exceptionally generous estate planning.
Read MoreTribute to Juan Ulloa
I first met Juan Ulloa in the late ’90s as we led Opportunity International Canada Insight Trips to Nicaragua, and we made a connection that I will cherish forever. Juan was a giant in our industry — as a leader and a man of God — and it was such an honour for us to serve alongside him.
Read MoreOpportunity International United States statement in support of racial equity, justice, and flourishing
As we join the world in anguish and lament over racism, oppression, violence, and injustice, we recall the very tenets on which Opportunity was founded. Opportunity International exists to extend opportunity to those living in poverty in the developing world – Africa, Asia, and Latin America — giving them the means to overcome oppressive economic and social systems, improve their lives, and join the economic mainstream. We do this, motivated by our call to serve those who are left behind…
Read MoreJune Book Club: The Hundred Wells of Salaga
The Opportunity Book Club began in 2018 with a curated reading list that represented a wide range of geographies, authors, and perspectives. Our community has traveled around the world from the comfort of our couches, investing in the lives and stories of people whose experiences often look so much different than our own. Now—as our national conversation centers around learning and challenging long-entrenched ways of thinking, dismantling systemic racism, and opening our ears to voices that…
Read MoreUpdate from Our Partners in Haiti
In an effort to reach some of the most marginalized people in the world, Opportunity partners with Fonkoze, a microfinance organization in Haiti. If you have never been, Haiti is a country filled with resilient people who face some of the most challenges circumstances we have ever seen. The work Opportunity supports there serves women who live on the margins, earn less than $1 per day, suffer from hunger, and have no assets or access healthcare. People like this are often the ones who suffer the…
Read MoreMozambique: One Year After Cyclone Idai
Mozambique: One Year After Cyclone Idai by Mary Pat McVay Rallying Together | It Truly Does Take A Village | We Don't Quit A few weeks ago, I spoke to my colleagues Doreen and Melba to get an update on the COVID-19 situation in Mozambique and see how they were coping and adapting. We chatted about the teenagers the three of us have at home, what kind of virtual learning they are engaged in, and how much time they should be allowed on social media with friends. Then Doreen said, “It’s…
Read MoreFinding a Lifeline for the Poor and the Financial Institutions that Serve Them
The COVID-19 crisis has already hit the poor hard, and will hit them harder. Microfinance Institutions are close to affected groups and provide an essential lifeline - but are themselves under threat as deposits fall and the poor struggle with repayments. Supporting the financial institutions and social models which define the sector needs to be a priority for Governments and donors. We offer a three point plan: digitisation; financial support; and, above all, a platform so that the voices can be…
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