“When you can empower someone to do good through the basic human desire to explore, it’s a very exciting thing,” says two-time Kiva Fellow Chris Baker. Now founder of development-minded tourism company OneSeed Expeditions, Chris says his work is all about “exploring the world and investing in the people you meet” -- an idea that grew out of his experience as a Kiva Fellow.There’s no su ...

At Kiva, we value being in tune with the latest news and research about microfinance and poverty alleviation. This Kiva Scholar blog series is designed to share what we've learned with you! In this edition, we take a closer look at mobile banking's potential to change microfinance.In many microfinance markets around the world, it is becoming increasingly common for clients to have access to m ...

We are excited to announce Kiva’s first partnership with a university: Strathmore University in Nairobi, Kenya!Students at Strathmore University will be able to access a variety of loans, funded by you, through this new partnership with Kiva. The different loans available will help pay for students’ tuition throughout their 4 year degree, help them through a period of cash flow difficulties ...

“A Cashless Africa.”   This is a big statement.  Yet, it is the simply stated dream of MTZ , Kiva’s first mobile payments Field Partner, located in Zambia. MTZ is a mobile money/transactions organization that allows individuals to send and receive money over their phones.  This model relies on a distributed network of agents, known within MTZ as Champion Agent ...

By Kimberly Strathearn, KF 16 Although you will find many familiar fast food restaurants in Turkey, I have never understood why they are popular.  Turkish food is just too darn good. When I first started living in Turkey in 1998, there was very little western fast food, very little packaged junk food, and very little prepared foods (i.e. bottled sauces, frozen vegetable, mixes and other packaged ...