microloan- a small loan given to individuals who might not have access to typical banking services, usually to start or expand small, self sufficient businesses.
philanthropy- the generous donation of money to good causes, and Bill and Melinda Gates are the second greatest philanthropists in history ($28 billion, ⅓ of their wealth)
They support research and development for a vaccine, diagnostics, and mosquito-control measures - like mosquito nets!
-Who are the providers of microloans?
One of the best-known lenders is Kiva.orgAs of November 26, 2013, Kiva has distributed $498,939,550 in loans from 1,015,823 lenders to 1,177,248 borrowers.
A total of 637,003 loans have been funded through Kiva.
The average loan size is $410.89.
The average Kiva user has made 10.06 loans
Kiva's current repayment rate for all its partners is 99.01%
- Who receives microloans?
Microentrepreneurs who are trying to start (or kickstart!) a small business.
Villagers needing to fund a clinic, hospital, or other health care facility (malaria treatment, drugs, hypos, refrigerators, sanitation).
Teachers trying to run a school (buying anything from books and pencils to desks and chairs).
Students wanting to further their education (college tuition).
-Problems with microloans
High interest rate (sometimes as high as 23%).
he cost of providing banking services to those living in
poverty is high.
Being the company that provides tiny
loans can be expensive.
What’s harder and more time-consuming to process:
one $500,000 loan, or five hundred $1000 loans?
-Microloans are a help, not a cure
Banking services are often unavailable to poor people -
microloans fill a gap.
It’s not just loans, but also insurance, legal representation,
and help with financial planning that become available.
These are all important to people who are trying to break the cycle of poverty.
But poverty is a huge problem with no easy solutions.
-Challenges
There are many challenges faced by developing nations.
Some of these can be alleviated through microloans.
- substandard education ($ can help purchase supplies, buy books, pay teachers)
- poor health care ($ can help buy supplies, construct new/better buildings, deal with malaria)
Malaria
(comes from the words "bad air")
- It’s a mosquito-borne infectious disease
- humans and animals can be infected through the bite of a female mosquito
- no vaccine exists :(
- it kills around 665,000 people a year, many of them children
in sub-Saharan Africa mosquito nets can be effective (Thank you, Bill Gates)
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