There are lots of things going on all over the world in microfinance every day, it’s pretty hard to follow even a fraction of them. So, I’ve decided to share a few links of the interesting things that have been going on in microfinance within the last couple of weeks:
I’m sure everybody knows about the major earthquake that has devastated Haiti, killing thousands of people. Over the last week I have seen support coming from all angles, from mainstream sites like Facebook, BBC, CNN, celebrities like Ben Stiller donating through their charities, to major non-profits in the area like Yele Haiti and the Red Cross. It is great to see so many different companies and organizations contributing to help the cause. Although the earthquake was major, it was only a little bigger than earthquakes in the US, but caused an expontentially higher amount of damange and casualties. I think this earthquake opened peoples’ eyes about the impact that natural disasters can have on developing countries. Similar to the Tsunami in Thailand earlier this decade, people have joined from all over to help donate money. Although a lot of the rebuilding will be coming from the donations that people will be making, one of the next steps will be for people in Haiti to help themselves rebuild. I think there will be a big microfinance push as things start to get cleared up in Haiti. With all of the relief organizations helping out, it’s only a matter of time that microfinance will take over. In the last week alone, there have been a lot of microfinance organizations that have been helping the cause. I decided that I would share some of the ones I have heard about.
-Alex Counts from the Grameen Foundation talks about the next step to help Haiti rebuild:
On Wednesday,20 January, at 6:00AM a 6.1 magnitude aftershock struck Haiti (with an epicenter approximately 35 miles north of the capital, Port-au-Prince). This is the largest aftershock yet and it comes just eight days after the tragic 7.1 magnitude earthquake hit the capital. As a result of the aftershock, many unstable buildings collapsed; however, we are fortunate they were empty as many survivors of the original quake have been sleeping on the streets. We ask for continued prayers and support for the people of Haiti.
In light of this disaster, Esperanza is partnering with various doctors and medical volunteers in the towns of Elias Pina and Jimani, located on the border with Haiti. Loads of water, food, personal hygiene items and medicines have been shipped to these areas. We are also working with our already established network of pastors and church leaders who are currently preparing sites in Port-au-Prince to receive aid directly into the country.
As the situation in Haiti becomes dire, we are still in need of cash donations from our partners abroad. Monetary gifts of $40 to Esperanza´s Disaster Relief initiatives will provide a family with its basic necessities (food, bottled water, healthcare kits, etc.). For more information on how to help, please contact the Esperanza Disaster Response Group at disasterresponse@esperanza.org
With the Simpsons having almost as many years as I’ve had in my life, the show has been there by my side growing up. So when I saw the Yeardley Smith, the voice of Lisa Simpson, was with Alex Counts from the Grameen Foundation working with MFIs in Haiti, I was immediatley a big fan. They do a great job of documenting the journey on the Grameen Foundation Blog: Creating A World Without Poverty.
