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.
Our Prayers for the Millions Affected by the Drought in East Africa
For the past two years, a drought has affected East Africa and has placed more than 10 million people at risk. The lack of rain, especially in Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia, has caused crops to fail, food prices to rise, and cattle to perish, reducing food sources and food security for the people. Unfortunately, there is no immediate end in sight, as rains are not expected in the near future and the harvest season will not occur for several months. In Kenya, it is estimated that 3.5 million people…
Read MoreUpdate: Opportunity DRC in Kinshasa Grows, Expanding Microfinance to More People of the Congo
Opportunity Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) celebrated its grand opening on May 19th in the capital city of Kinshasa. Since Opportunity International‘s arrival in the DRC, we’ve seen marked changes in the lives of the Congolese people. Opportunity DRC is extending much-needed microfinance products in a country where only 1% of the population has access to basic financial services. To date, over 690 Opportunity DRC clients have already received loans to grow their businesses. Two-thirds of…
Read MoreWhat We’re Reading: “Rural and Agricultural Finance in the Spotlight at Cracking the Nut Conference”
A few weeks ago, Shari Berenbach, Director of USAID’s Microenterprise Development Office, wrote a blog post on the USAID’s IMPACTblog reported on a conference held in Washington that directly addressed the problems that face agricultural microfinance, as 600 million smallholder farmers currently live on less than $2 a day. Speakers at the conference emphasized new technology as a way to overcome previous obstacles and create opportunities for these populations. Dr. William Jack of Georgetown…
Read MoreStudents of the World (SOW): Ghanaian Agricultural Finance Client Beatrice is a “Lady of the Land”
The Students of the World (SOW) Boston team has just returned from a month-long trip to Ghana to visit Opportunity Ghana‘s microfinance operations and document their experiences in dozens of photos, posts and more on their blog. You can see all their updates and content on their site, and stay tuned to the Opportunity Blog and our Facebook page for updates from their trip. The following post, “Lady of the Land,” was published on Wednesday, June 18 about Ghanaian agricultural client Beatrice…
Read MoreCelebrating Independence Day around the World
On Independence Day, Americans celebrate with fireworks, barbeques, and joyous gatherings. We celebrate our “Americanness” whole-heartedly today and believe our national identity is a representation of the freedom that we gained in 1776. With that being said, none of us were alive in 1776! In fact, the majority of us don’t have relatives that were in this country during independence. Yet, our desire to celebrate our love for this country manifests within us because of the freedoms it brought…
Read MoreSpotlight on Educational Microfinance & IDP Rising Schools: Students of the World (SOW) Meets Students & Educators in Ghana
The Students of the World (SOW) Boston team is in Ghana all this month visiting Opportunity Ghana‘s microfinance operations and documenting their experiences in a diverse array of photos, posts and more on their blog. You can see all their updates and content on their site, and stay tuned to the Opportunity Blog and our Facebook page for updates from their trip. The following post was co-written by SOW with their Assistant Filmmaker Sarah Stein Lubrano. After arriving in a very lush Kumasi by…
Read MoreDay 4: “Dream Big” – Opportunity Colombia Empowers Young Entrepreneurs, Mothers, Trust Groups & More through Microfinance
The following travel post was written by Jeannette Stewart, a member of the Opportunity International Board of Governors living in Maryland. This week, Jeannette is traveling with her son on the Opportunity Family Week Insight Trip to Colombia. Other Colombia travelers have written posts this week too, catch up on all their adventures by reading their posts here. Teaching Cartagena’s Youth to Dream Big “Dream Big!” hailed Alejandra Sayas as she shared with us her greatest challenges and hopes…
Read MoreDay 3: Striving to Have Enough — Opportunities for Colombian People Through Savings
The following travel post was written by David Gardner, a member of the Opportunity International Board of Governors and co-founder of The Motley Fool, a multimedia financial services company, living in Washington, D.C. with his wife Margaret and their teenage children. The Gardners are traveling right now on the Opportunity Family Week Insight Trip to Colombia. Margaret and daughter Katherine have each also written posts about the trip this week, which you can read here. Vanguard founder Jack Bogle’s…
Read MoreDay 2: Tales of Transformation in a Bogotá Trust Group
The following travel post was written by Margaret Gardner, a member of the Opportunity International Board of Governors living in Washington, D.C. Margaret is currently traveling on the Opportunity Family Week Insight Trip to Colombia with her husband David and their children. Her daughter Katherine wrote a blog post from Day 1 of the trip, which you can read here. The second day of our Colombia Insight Trip we visited the Opportunity offices in Bogotá. There we met the dedicated staff that supports…
Read MoreDay 1: Family Week Insight Trip to See the Country, Meet the People of Colombia
This week, Opportunity International supporters are traveling on the Family Week Insight Trip to Colombia. The following travel blog post was written by Katherine Gardner, teenage daughter of David and Margaret, reflecting on Day 1 of her family’s Colombian journey with Opportunity. Today was the first day of our Colombia Insight Trip. As we boarded our bus, gleaming in the fresh sun, I remember quite clearly a brilliant blue sky. Over the next hour, our bus wound through sloping countrysides of…
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