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© 2026 Opportunity Internationala 501(c)3 nonprofit. EIN: 540907624.
Headquarters: 101 N Wacker Drive, Suite 1150, Chicago, IL 60606

News Blog

Cell Phones Deliver Life Insurance

by Opportunity International

In October 2010, Opportunity International’s microinsurance subsidiary, MicroEnsure, launched a pilot test with the mobile network Tigo Ghana around a new product embedded into the subscriber’s airtime purchases. The more airtime Tigo customers purchase, the more free life insurance they earn for themselves and a second family member. For Tigo, this insurance has helped reduce client churn and increase airtime sales. After the successful pilot, MicroEnsure scaled up the operation in Ghana, reaching…

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Thank You for Your Partnership in 2011

by Opportunity International

From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for your partnership in 2011. As we look back on the year, we know that it’s because of your ongoing support that Opportunity International is able to empower our clients and their families with life-changing opportunity. Of course, there’s still so much to do. This past year marked Opportunity’s 40th anniversary of bringing life-changing financial solutions to the world’s most impoverished people. As we start the new year, we’re looking forward…

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What We’re Reading: “Ten Biggest Positive Africa Stories of 2011,” The New Yorker

by Emily Riemer

“…Yes, there is tragedy in Africa, and you will always find it there, and we must take those tragedies seriously, but there is also extraordinary opportunity. And if you see this continent as the continent of the future, it sort of reframes it. This is a continent that, by 2050, will be the largest and the youngest continent in the world…” – U2′s Bono, July 2011, The David Letterman Show As we close out 2011 and consider the momentous year it was for Africa–from the Arab Spring uprisings…

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Year-end Update from MicroEnsure, Providing a Powerful Safety Net for the World’s Most Vulnerable People

by Diane Ferguson

As we approach the end of year, we’re celebrating a big 2011 full of growth for MicroEnsure, Opportunity International‘s microinsurance subsidiary. Here are a few highlights from the year in review… During 2011, MicroEnsure grew ten-fold in Africa to cover more than one million people in Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania. Within two years, the company expects to serve more than five million people in Africa, the vast majority of whom have never had access to insurance. In the past year, MicroEnsure…

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We Wish You a Merry Christmas

by Opportunity International

On behalf of Opportunity International‘s global family, we wish you all the joy, peace, love and blessings of Christmas. More than ever, we’re grateful for your ongoing support of our work, which helps empower our clients and provides life-changing opportunity to their families. Below, please watch a special Christmas message featuring our clients from Malawi, Colombia, India and Mexico. We wish you a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year. Watch a special Christmas message from our family…

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Christmas Blessings from Opportunity Colombia

by Opportunity International

The clients and staff of Opportunity Colombia have prepared a special Christmas message. The Opportunity family wishes you a joyous Christmas and a new year full of hope.

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My Family Traditions at Christmas

by Jamelyn Lederhouse

In the U.S., Christmas is a time when we anticipate the falling of snow, and pine-scented candles, and friends and family. I look forward to most of that (although I actually hate being cold so I’m not looking forward to snow). All things considered, this season is pretty spectacular. Every circle of family and friends celebrates Christmas with different traditions and customs. In mine, we all live near each other, and enjoy celebrating Christmas Eve with lots of extended family, lots of food,…

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As I Consider Advent this Year

by Jamelyn Lederhouse

This advent season, my church’s sermon series is “He is our King.” It’s a refreshingly challenging one as it looks not so much to a meek baby in the manger, but the hope of a powerful God coming to meet humankind within drastic poverty and political oppression. On a recent Sunday, as I listened to the pastor speak to the political and cultural environment at the time that Christ was born, I realized how different my current context is living in 21st-century Chicago. I’m grateful for my…

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Solar Panel Loans Offer a Beacon of Light for Ugandan Families

by Diane Ferguson

In November, Opportunity Uganda launched a solar energy microfinance loan to provide power to families currently living with no or unreliable electricity. Opportunity Uganda is now offering clients like Betty Aute, a papyrus weaver and mother of two, a solar panel loan of about $300, which covers panels and installation and is repayable over two years, to bring light to their family homes. The implications are life-changing and endless–when it becomes dark at night, so many productive activities…

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Celebrating 40 Years of Microfinance with the “Holiday Fête” in Scottsdale, Arizona

by Opportunity International

On Tuesday evening, Dec. 6, 2011, the members of Opportunity International’s Arizona Board of Governors hosted the “Holiday Fête: Commemorating 40 Years of Client Impact and Transformation,” a 40th-anniversary celebration at the Gainey Ranch Golf Club in Scottsdale. “Opportunity International is proud to celebrate our 40th year of working alongside our clients, staff and supporters to fight global poverty,” Jon Yasuda, Opportunity’s SVP of resource development and interim CEO, said about…

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