Microfinance Maximise Your Impact
Why Give
Home-grown with a 40+ year history of helping families out of poverty, here’s how we multiply your donations so you have the greatest impact possible…
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You make a donationMicrofinance is a sustainable solution to poverty. By giving out small loans instead of hand-outs, we’re able to steward your donations, making sure that for each dollar you invest in families living in poverty, more than one dollar will end up in the hands of those who need it most. |
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Funds are leveragedOnce received, funds are usually leveraged by our local program partners. The funds you provide are used as an indication of financial strength – enabling our program partners to borrow more money from other lenders. These combined funds are then available to loan to a larger number of families, maximising the impact of your initial donation. |
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Recycling takes placeLoans are then recycled, ensuring that your donation is continually at work. Opportunity has a loan repayment rate of 99%, meaning that once a person repays their loan, it is re-lent to someone else. This next loan will also be repaid and so on. This recycling means that more families are able to start businesses and begin to work their way out of poverty – using what are essentially the same funds. |
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Costs are reducedLeveraging and the recycling of loans mean that the one-off costs it takes for Opportunity to run our programs represents a continually diminishing proportion of your donation. For every $1 that was received in 2013, only 10 cents was spent on fundraising and administration. And as time goes on, the percentage of this initial cost gets less and less. There are no more costs, but your donation remains at work, increasing your impact. |
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Impact is increasedAs loan recipients create successful businesses, their business profits will have a ripple effect. With an increased income, a family can begin to afford nutritious food, proper shelter, medical care and an education for their children. Plus, as families use loans to expand their businesses, many go on to employ others – creating jobs for others in their community and boosting the local economy. |
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A sustainable solution to poverty is achievedUnderpinned by sound economics, microfinance is one of the few anti-poverty mechanisms that can create a lasting and cost-effective solution to poverty. The power of your donation is magnified, helping more people work their way out poverty and transform their lives. And for every new donation you make, other families in need are able to take their first step on the pathway out of poverty. |