People share the same basic needs such as food, clean water, housing and education. Unfortunately for families like Digna’s (pictured) in the Philippines, these needs often go unfulfilled. A mother-of-six, Digna used to live in a makeshift house made of wood, bamboo and sacks. She sold vegetables at her local market to provide for her children, but making very little money, she had to borrow from family members to try and pay for an education for her children.

Through your support, Opportunity and our program partners seek to help people like Digna grow a business, earn a regular income and access these basic, everyday items. The Progress out of Poverty Index is a tool that enables us to assess the poverty levels of those we’re serving and then also track their progress out of poverty over time as they begin to access food, education and so on. Through a set of 10 simple questions, such as “What is the level of education attained by the head of the household?” or “Of what material is the roof of the residence made?”, we can effectively understand the needs of families and ensure they’re able to get help in the areas of their lives where they need it most.

In Cabanatuan City in the Philippines, our program partner has effectively used the Progress out of Poverty Index to:

• Create initial and follow up surveys with loan recipients
• Track levels of poverty
• Examine how poverty may be related to aspects of life such as geography and gender
• Benchmark data to national and regional averages
• Collect information to share with other organisations working to help families out of poverty.

Digna is proof that small loans change lives. The support of someone like you allowed her to expand her business into a small grocery store, lowering costs and increasing profits. She’s now able to afford an education for all of her children and even has plans for the future of her business. With the Progress out of Poverty Index, we can help ensure that your support gives more families an opportunity like Digna’s had.

“I am hoping that people will keep supporting Opportunity so they can continuously give better programs and services to the people like me, because they really have a big impact in our lives,” she says.

Read more about how Opportunity measures transformation in the lives of families like Digna’s.