Kiva - February 2015

Hello, there!

This month I got a bit of a head start on my Kiva loan, which is probably good considering how short February is...  The moment I saw this loan, I knew I had to get behind it.

Najuma (Uganda)

A loan of $1,750 helps Najuma to buy construction materials for expanding the drug shop.

Najuma is a 29-year-old mother of one, aged three years, from Kambuzi, Kigoma, Bushenyi district. She is a drug shop operator who works 12 hours a day. She started this business on July 15, 2013 to generate an income and treat the local population which was in need in her area. She was referred to UGAFODE by one of the institution’s clients and so this is her first loan from UGAFODE.

She has applied for a loan of UGX 5,000,000 to purchase construction materials for her building which is under construction, where she will transform the drug shop to enlarge it into a bigger clinic. She hopes to have a good and standard medical facility around the Kambuzi area to treat the sick who are mostly her clients. She faces the challenge of most clients coming to buy drugs and not having enough money plus poor government policies that are ever against the operation of a drug shop. Also, without forgetting the lack of enough income to buy in bulk which would give her leverage on price thus availing herself of cheaper drugs for the local population. She describes herself as an honest lady and thanks UGAFODE as a whole very much for the support rendered to her in the business.

 At the time of this writing, Najuma's loan is 37% funded - why not help her out and get involved today?

Kiva - October 2014

October has come to a close so it's time to make my monthly Kiva loan contribution.  I love it when I stumble across opportunities for big impact, such as a school that is providing improvements for its student body.  As a teacher, that clearly hits close to home but also the fact that this one contribution will positively improve 250+ people's lives, both on an immediate and long-term basis is just plain awesome.  Awesome.

Jinja Central School (Uganda)

A loan of $1,150 helps Jinja Central School to purchase a water filtration system to provide clean drinking water for its students.   

Greetings from Uganda! This is Justus. He is the Head Teacher of Jinja Central Primary School, a mixed school in the urban area of Jinja with 525 students. Jinja Central Primary School has requested a loan to cover the cost of installing and maintaining a UV water filtration system to provide clean drinking water for its students. The school does not currently have access to consistent clean drinking water and therefore has to spend a considerable portion of its budget on firewood, which is used to boil water for the children. Installing a water filtration system will therefore save the school money in the long-term as the cost of firewood will be reduced. The loan will enable the school to purchase a UV water treatment system with a 450 litre tank, which will be big enough to store clean drinking water for the students every day.

Jinja Central Primary School will repay their loan from their school fees, which they collect each term. Justus ultimately hopes that having access to safe drinking water will improve his student’s concentration and attendance by reducing the number of children that fall sick from water-borne diseases as well as increase the number of students coming to the school.

You too can get involved and contribute to a loan today!

Kiva - June 2014

Continuing to catch myself up on sharing my Kiva project, today we're looking back to the loan I supported in June.

Kiima Foods (Uganda)

A loan of $25,000 helped Kiima Foods to buy and sell Barefoot Power Solar Lighting products.

Kiima Foods is a farmer-registered organization with an objective of improving the livelihood of the rural poor people (1200 households) through increased access and usage of clean energy.

The loan applied for will be used to increase the working capital for the solar lighting and phone-charging project that is benefiting the rural people. The loan is intended to be used to procure 400 solar systems at once. Through this bulk purchase, the business will access a price discount and increase the business returns.

The loan is planned to extend to the active poor people a loan system that will enable them to access solar systems and pay gradually over 12 months.

Six Month Kiva Update
And in case you've been wondering what the current status is on my previously supported lenders this year, here's a little update.

January -  Sreyleang (Cambodia), building latrine: 30% repaid
February - Christine (Kenya), chlorinated drinking water: repayment begins 2016
March - Matay (Tanzania), purchased biodigesters: 25% repaid
April - Salome (Kenya), purchased irrigation kit: 24% repaid
May - Carlos Alberto (Mexico), community recycling programme start-up: repayment begins Dec. 2014
May 2014 Bonus - Milagro (Columbia), sewing business supplies: 14% repaid
June - Kiima Foods (Uganda), bulk purchase of solar power units: repayment begins 2015