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Carol Stream, Illinois 60132

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© 2026 Opportunity Internationala 501(c)3 nonprofit. EIN: 540907624.

News Blog

Meet Our Staff: Our New Head of Education Finance, Nathan Byrd

by Opportunity International

This May, we welcomed Nathan Byrd as our new head of education finance. Based in Nairobi, Kenya, and reporting to Colin McCormack, managing director, Africa, Nathan will provide strategic direction and leadership for our education finance program, developing specialized financial tools for schools and families and forming strategic partnerships in the education sector. Nathan is currently in the process of reviewing Opportunity‘s entire education finance program to redefine and tailor our future…

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A Drumbeat and a Trust Group: My Trip to Tanzania

by Malin Akerman

The following post is by actress Malin Akerman, who recently joined Young Ambassadors for Opportunity, from her March Insight Trip with her husband Roberto to see Opportunity’s work in Tanzania. In my last post I told you about how and why Roberto and I decided to take a trip with Opportunity International to Tanzania. Here’s a really brief recap of our trip, with highlights, insights and surprises. First, we travelled to Opportunity International’s Arusha branch to meet with the local staff…

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The First Day of Summer & Transforming Communities through Solar Power

by Opportunity International

Today is the first day of summer, the summer solstice, here in the U.S. and our longest day of the year. Hopefully, you’re celebrating tonight with a picnic dinner, a barbeque, maybe an evening run or a walk to take full advantage of the extra minutes of daylight. But today also reminds us of the awesome potential power of the sun that can be harnessed by the people who need it most. Imagine your day ending when the sun goes down, whether that’s mid-afternoon in winter or late evening in summer.…

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What Makes a Good Father? Opportunity Colombia’s Chief Transformation Officer on Fatherhood and the Male Trust Group Project

by Opportunity International

Happy Father’s Day! As we celebrate with the fathers in our lives today, we’re examining what qualities make a good dad. For a group of our clients in a pilot project in Colombia, they’re examining that question in depth, and developing their leadership skills as men and fathers. In the post below, Jim Frantz, Opportunity Colombia‘s chief transformation officer, explains Opportunity’s Male Trust Group Project and the challenges of being a good father in any culture. Male Trust Group Project Opportunity…

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A Better Future for the Congo: Developing the Next Generation of Congolese Fathers

by Kadita Tshibaka

The following post by Kadita “A.T.” Tshibaka, member of Opportunity’s Board of Directors, was originally published in The Huffington Post on Friday, June 15. The original post is here. My greatest challenge as a father has been the moments of terror when my children were gravely ill, and we thought we were going to lose them. It happened with my daughter and it happened with my son when they were young. Fortunately, they both survived. Growing up in the DR Congo, I’ve seen the toll that poverty,…

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One-Year Anniversary of Grand Opening of Opportunity DRC

by Opportunity International

One year ago, Opportunity International celebrated the grand opening of its operations in the DR Congo with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in the heart of Kinshasa’s Masina market. Three weeks ago, on Tuesday, May 22, 42 local and international staff, dignitaries and supporters gathered to celebrate the one-year anniversary of this milestone at a special luncheon in Kinshasa that received national television coverage. Among the attendees were the Governor of the DRC’s Central Bank; the U.S. Ambassador…

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A Story of Service: A Trust Group Helps Keep their Community Clean

by Opportunity International

Seventeen women make up Opportunity India’s Trust Group called Samudram. These women have received loans and training to grow their businesses and increase their income, bringing hope to their families for a brighter future. They celebrated their success by “paying it forward”–making a difference in their communities. Trash pickup is not a high priority in the slum area of Chennai, where they live and work, so garbage piles up and overflows from the municipal cans. The team of entrepreneurs…

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Fathering Opportunity: Meeting Congolese Client and Father Figure Papa Roger

by Harry Turner

The following post is by Harry Turner, CEO of Opportunity’s Global Microfinance Operations, recounting his recent trip to DR Congo where he met Papa Roger, an extraordinary father and a father figure to a group of 17 orphaned young men. On our trip we visited client Papa Roger. There couldn’t be a more holistic view of a person committed to transformation than Papa Roger. Papa Roger’s business is to cook sweet potato chips (you can see the bags of them in the photo at left). He wakes at four…

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Photo of the Day: One Laptop, One Big Challenge for Technology Education in Africa

by Nathan Byrd

In the photo at right, a junior high level 2 instructor at Ahobrese Academy in Dansoman, Ghana, teaches a technology course with the one laptop in the entire school. They have the passion, drive, knowledge, commitment and the classroom. Now they just need the computers. This is my challenge: I’m looking for the best way to get computers into the hands of kids like these in a sustainable, scalable way across sub-Saharan Africa, so that they can receive marketable skills training and accelerate their…

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Have You Gotten Our Note? Volunteer Thank-You Day in the Office

by Opportunity International

Two weeks ago, two groups of Opportunity volunteers came by our office in Oak Brook–an afternoon and an evening shift–to help staff write thank-you notes to you. If you made a tribute patch this Mother’s Day on our Global Opportunity Quilt, you’ve probably already gotten a hand-written note from one of our wonderful volunteers. We’re all so grateful to you for supporting our work and helping to empower mothers all over the world! Check out a few of the photo highlights from our thank-you…

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