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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

Prayers for Peace in the DR Congo

by Opportunity International

We wanted to provide you with a brief update surrounding the situation that is unfolding on the ground in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in response to last week’s elections. International news agencies such as Voice of America, BBC, and United Press International (UPI) have reported that tensions surrounding the elections resulted in violence that led to 18 civilian deaths and hundreds of injuries. Election results were scheduled to be released on Tuesday, Dec. 6, but have been postponed,…

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World AIDS Day 2011: Ending AIDS in a Generation

by Emily Riemer

Today, Thursday, Dec. 1, is World AIDS Day. This year’s theme, Zero new HIV infections, Zero discrimination, Zero AIDS-related deaths, is an optimistic one but there is good reason to hope. The latest Report on the Global HIV/AIDS Response by the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF and UNAIDS indicates that increased access to HIV services has resulted in a 15% reduction of new infections over the past decade and a 22% decline in AIDS-related deaths in the last five years. Launched in 1987…

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Skip the Mall Today

by Opportunity International

We’re offering a way for you to skip the mall and spread the joy all at the same time. Instead of fighting the crowds on Black Friday, order Opportunity International gift cards at opportunity.org/giftcard for all your family and friends. With our gift cards, they’ll experience the joy of helping an entrepreneur like Margaret Wangui (pictured) grow her business with a small loan—enabling her to feed her family, send her children to school and improve her community. In addition, right now, your…

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We’re Grateful for You

by Opportunity International

On behalf of Opportunity International’s global family, we want to wish you a very blessed and happy Thanksgiving holiday. This Thanksgiving, we’re grateful for contributors like you who work side by side with us to empower families in poverty and create lasting change in the world. Your support means so much to both our clients and our staff. It makes it possible for clients like Ghanaian cocoa farmer Beatrice Duku Frimpomg Boaten to obtain a savings account, loan and insurance from Opportunity.…

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Innovation to Aid the Horn of Africa: USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs

by Emily Riemer

Last Thursday, USAID administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah spoke at The Chicago Council on Global Affairs lunchtime talk entitled “America’s role in Food Security and the Horn of Africa Famine.” Administrator Shah began with slides and stories from the amalgam of refugee camps that make up the Dadaab camps in Kenya. The camps, which were built for 90,000 people and currently house 380,000, now make Dadaab, according to Shah, the third largest city in Kenya. And every day, more people, mostly Somalian…

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Opportunity Celebrates 40 Years at “Side by Side” Gala in Minneapolis

by The “Side by Side” Volunteer Committee

Last Thursday night, more than 400 guests gathered at International Market Square in Minneapolis, Minn. to celebrate Opportunity International‘s 40th anniversary at a gala event, “Side by Side: Celebrating 40 Years of Opportunity.” The evening included entertainment by Minnesota resident and contemporary Christian singer Sara Groves and the African musical group Duniya Drum and Dance, and featured a reception, dinner and a silent auction for a number of prizes including a five-day Insight Trip…

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Today, Opportunity International and Empact’s Young Entrepreneurs Are at the White House

by Opportunity International

Today, Opportunity International and Empact visit the White House. Empact, formerly known as Extreme Entrepreneurship Education, is honoring the country’s top 100 young entrepreneurs on their Empact 100 list at a White House event with senior administration officials from 2:00-4:00 p.m. Eastern time. Opportunity staff member Sonya Perez-Lauterbach, the manager of Young Ambassadors for Opportunity (YAO), will be giving a brief introduction about Opportunity’s work, our partnership with Empact,…

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Opportunity Participates in the 2011 Global Microcredit Summit

by Opportunity International

This week, one of the largest microfinance industry conferences in the world launches in Valladolid, Spain. The 15th annual Global Microcredit Summit runs Monday, Nov. 14-Thursday, Nov. 17 and features Her Majesty Queen Sofía of Spain, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, and more than 2,000 delegates from over 100 countries, including Opportunity International‘s Richard Leftley, president and CEO of our microinsurance subsidiary MicroEnsure. The Summit gathers microfinance practitioners,…

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Tunes for Tanzania–who knew a Tuesday could be this good?

by Lauren Anderson

While everyone seemed moved by the goal of building a bank in Tanzania, as I gauged from the robust rounds of applause, Tuesday’s Tunes for Tanzania event was also just a good time for all. We packed into Schubas in Chicago to listen to the music of three different bands; we strategized to win tantalizing raffle prizes; and all around the room, circles of people kept morphing to make new conversations. It was a room full of YAO members, their friends, and people who’d heard about the event online…

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Carlos Moreno-The Success of Opportunity’s First Microfinance Client

by Opportunity International

Carlos Moreno was a small business owner selling spices in Santiago de Cali, Colombia, but he knew he needed additional funding in order to grow his business. In 1971, Carlos became Opportunity International’s very first loan client. Today, Carlos says, “My loan helped me expand my business so I could sell 52 different spices, teas and medicinal herbs.” With the loan, he was able to purchase spice dryers and grinders to expand his small factory, and increase his spice crop yields on his farm.…

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