Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani announces the opening of the Bright Future Foundation for Microcredit in the Kurdistan Region.
The project will start in Erbil, the capital, and later offices in Suleimaniah and Dohuk will be opened.
We are confident that if we are successful in this effort we will have more funds available to sustain this project.
When we first had the idea to establish this project we looked for a specialised partner with experience in managing projects such as this. I am glad to announce that the BFF has found a well-known partner in the field of microcredit, US-based CHF.
Apart from teaching us the principles of microcredit, this institution has agreed to make a considerable contribution to this programme. That is why, before activating BFF, we are happy to have gained the support and cooperation of CHF.
This is a good opportunity for us to develop a widespread and beneficial network of contacts at the international level. I would like to thank CHF for its readiness to help this project as a full partner. I appreciate their generosity and financial support.Iraq Updates gives the news very little spin.
- Pagol Nari of Unheard Voices posts about victims of Cyclone Sidr not getting the expected relief from their microloan debt in the wake of the Cyclone devastation.
These debt cancellations will impact the micro-credit sector, but to what extent will only be seen over time. Critics have noted that many NGOs have used micro-credit operations as money makers among their other activities. Last year, as New Age noted about a World Bank report most NGOs survive and run their programs on micro-credit interest and not local donations... Others have complained that although national offices made announcements about suspension of collection, often this message failed to trickle down to field staff who were under pressure from higher levels to collect loans.
- Israeli blogger Shahar Golan posts about using Kiva.org to make the holiday festive.
This is Shazia Nawaz, photographed here with one of her four children. She and her husband live in the town of Vehari in Punjab province, Pakistan. Yesterday she applied for a micro-loan of US$250 to buy a new dry cleaning machine for her dry cleaning business. Yesterday just so happened to be the day that I decided to log on to Kiva.org, a non-profit organization that transformed microfinancing into an interpersonal experience. ...The money I loaned will gradually return to my account, and I would then decide whether I want to withdraw it or loan it to someone else.
With the season's holidays drawing near I wanted to urge you to get into the spirit of giving, and less into the spirit of buying.
Meanwhile, A Harbor in the Tempest updates on that blogger's Kiva projects, Janet at Feminist Mormon Housewives blogs about Heifer International, and this gifts blog points to a few other online giving opps.
- If you'd like to go them one better, check out Philantopic's "Ten High-Impact Giving Opportunities" post.
- Ian Welsh of The Agonist blog links to One Campaign's comparison of presidential candidates' statements about ending poverty.
One thing One's done which I wish more advocacy groups would do is put up a page which compares the statements of various Presidential candidates to each other. You can pick up to three, so, of course, I pulled up Clinton, Obama and Edwards.
- Pratish at Saving the World One Bar Chart at a Time posts about the Indonesian Microfinance Sector.
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