7.5 million
families accessing small loans and financial services
768,849
families reached with health training and care
47,158
children in school with school fee loans
121,511
people benefited through women's safety training
YOUR IMPACT: MEASURING WHAT REALLY MATTERS
your impact: microfinance
6,055,905 families in India and 1,430,913 families in Indonesia are benefiting from small loans and financial services, with more than 97 per cent of our loan clients being women.
As the financial needs of families living in poverty change, we are working with our local partners to provide comprehensive financial services for people living in poverty, including those in rural and remote areas.
Women like Manjuben, who lives in Varanasi, India, supports her young family using her sewing skills. She first took a loan from one of Opportunity’s local partners five years ago and purchased a sewing machine. Manjuben has since hired six women in her community. A perfect example of how helping one woman has a ripple effect not just on her family, but the wider community.
Your Impact: Health
Through our locally-led health programs in India, Bangladesh and Indonesia, 768,849 people were supported by Health Leaders and Health Entrepreneurs in Asia.
We're also helping Health Leaders connect communities with telehealth, providing more family protection with Health Finance and supporting mobile medical clinics, referrals and pop-up outpatient clinics. Last year, 2,689 families were reached through health insurance and 14,423 teleconsultations were facilitated.
This means real impact for women like Ferdousi. Her Health Leader training taught her the importance of menstrual hygiene, nutrition, and supplements. Ferdousi now supports her daughters by providing iron tablets and teaching them proper care, leading to noticeable health improvements.
Your Impact: Education
Opportunity EduFinance provided school fee loans to 47,158 families in India, Indonesia and Pakistan to ensure their children go to school and receive a quality education. School improvement loans have been provided to 8,925 schools to improve school facilities and education quality in these regions.
For Ms Sehrish, who founded Noor Grammar School in 2016, overcoming financial and management challenges helped the school grow from 30 to 170 students. Joining the EduQuality program transformed the school, improving child protection, financial management, and teacher development. With better-trained staff and stronger community ties, the school now provides a safer and more effective learning environment
Your Impact: Women's Safety
In India, 77,167 people were educated in trafficking prevention and 44,344 people were educated and supported to prevent gender-based violence.
We're also integrating gender-based violence prevention into community health programs in Chhattisgarh, India, training Health Leaders to provide awareness, survivor support, and safety education to 2,250 households.
Roopa, a dedicated teacher from Bihar, saw the Safe Village program as a chance to create a wider impact. As a Nodal Teacher, she became a vital link in preventing child marriage, trafficking, and abuse. Through counseling and advocacy, she works to empower families to protect their children and build a safer community.
Small loans driving impact
An independent study has shown for the third year in a row, that small loans received by women living in poverty in Asia are a practical and sustainable solution for financial independence. The Microfinance Index, conducted by 60 Decibels, surveyed 1,905 loan clients from five of Opportunity’s local partners in India and Indonesia in 2024.
Key results included:
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9 out of 10 of Opportunity’s clients reported increased income and being better able to manage their finances
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4 out of 5 people have increased their savings
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Three-quarters of clients are eating more or better-quality meals
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93 per cent of clients reported improved quality of life
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4 out of 5 clients reported that the amount of time spent worrying about their finances had decreased
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9 out of 10 women reported increased confidence subsequent to taking out a loan.
Partnering with smallholder farmers like Anita
Anita accessed small loans from Opportunity’s local partner to build and sustain her small farming business. On average, she was able to get around Rp.5,000 per kilo of rice (around A$0.50).
In 2024, Anita joined 11 other local women in TLM’s market linkages initiative. Thanks to the program, staff mentored her to improve her small business, focusing on aspects like the quality of her rice, and soon Anita was selling rice directly to the market linkages team, fetching Rp.9,000 per kilo – an 80 per cent increase.
Now a trusted supplier, she was offered the opportunity to become a ‘collector’– buying rice from other local farmers, ensuring the quality and then on-selling to TLM for distribution.