Status Update — October 1, 2007

As you may be aware, each business on Kiva’s website is posted by one of Kiva’s 60+ Lending Partners in 39 developing countries.  A Lending Partner is an independent microfinance institution that has a history of lending to the poor for a social purpose. They screen each entrepreneur, post his/her profile on the Kiva website, and administer your loan.

Kiva routinely audits each Lending Partner to ensure your loan is being dutifully administered to the entrepreneur you’ve selected. In the course of auditing our Lending Partner, Women’s Initiative to Eradicate Poverty (WITEP) in Uganda, Kiva discovered that some entrepreneurs were not receiving the full amount of their loans. 

This violates Kiva’s policies and we have terminated our relationship with WITEP. All of the loans made to entrepreneurs served by this Lending Partner have been refunded. We hope you realize that our audit uncovered a true exception to the norm; the vast majority of our Lending Partners administer your loans with the highest integrity. Kiva will continue to audit Lending Partners to ensure your loan is being dutifully administered – and to make our website a model for transparency in international development.

Partner Description: 

Women Initiative to Eradicate Poverty (WITEP) is a non-government, community-based organization formed to alleviate poverty and improve the standard of living for the poor women of Uganda. Their objective is to mobilize and sensitize people in grassroots projects, focusing in food production and food security. Advocating for programmes that encourage the emancipation of women and youth, they provide for exchange of professional ideas and skills acquisition on social, political, and economic development.