(guest article by Steve Goldstein)

What a concept! Solicit funds from well-intentioned people from around the world to make small, low interest, loans to small entrepreneurs who want to begin start-up businesses in third-world countries. How have they fared? To date, over 675,000 lenders from 192 countries have made some 170,000 loans. These loans totaled over $121 million dollars with the average loan amounting to just $399. The rate of repayment is over 98 percent.

This amazing “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” approach undertaken by Kiva caught our attention three years ago Kiva is a non-profit microcredit facilitating organization that makes use of the Internet and a roster of vetted Field Partners throughout the world to connect lenders and entrepreneurs.

NoVES initially became a Kiva Lender with about $1,500 in start-up funds derived from members’ donations. Loans that have been repaid have freed up funds for reinvestment. So far, we have lent $5,275. The loan portfolio is "managed" by the older Sunday schoolers under the guidance of Sunday School staff. Our purpose has been three-fold:

1. Benefit entrepreneurs in poorer areas of the world by providing seed money at very favorable interest rates;
2. Involve our youth in the lending process so that they experience and understand the difficulties that people all over the world experience in surviving; and
3. Build our youth’s financial literacy

Visit our Lender’s page at Kiva. See what the media are saying about Kiva at http://www.kiva.org/press.