 Micro Loans Make A Powerful Impact(Page 2 of 4) Partnering for Power Bay Area partner organizations and direct financers often collaborate, and all share the goal of empowering entrepreneurs. Many have a specific focus, whether that is on the population served or the methodologies employed. Women's Initiative (WI), for instance, focuses on the needs of the traditionally underserved. Designed for minorities, immigrants, and welfare recipients, WI holds classes in both Spanish and English, and offers scholarships and stipends for childcare and transportation that guarantees to make the program particularly accessible. Communications Associate Justina Cross explains that WI is a "one-stop shop:", "We provide both the access to capital and the training under one roof. We can do relationship-based loans, and we can lend to women despite bad credit or no credit, based on whether they completed all the work in class, created a good business plan, and so on." Cross attributes the high repayment rate of 90 percent — as reported nearly unanimously among micro-lenders — to a sense of community. "If you're not repaying the loan, the next woman who comes after you won't have access to the funds." She adds that community involvement doesn't end with repayment. "For 70 percent of our clients, some sort of eco or social consciousness is important to them. We have an ongoing network called SuccessLink — that's where we talk about how to build your business according to your values." Values and social responsibility are also strongly emphasized at Anew America, a nonprofit founded by Sylvia Rosales-Fike "to serve as a bridge between those who are new to America and the system of resources, opportunities, and networks. According to the organization, one quarter of foreign-born Latino and Southeast Asian residents in California live at or below the poverty line. To counter this, Anew America offers loans of $5,000-$50,000 as well as a college certificate program in business planning, a one-to-one matching savings program, access to capital, technology training, and assistance in getting computers. "What sets us apart from other business training programs is that we have a holistic package of three years that we offer to every participant and their families — educating them economically but also socially and politically," Rosales-Fike says. | ||
|
Bay Area Business Woman Digital Edition
Double click above for FREE subscription!
|
|
|
Copyright
2008 by Business Woman, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Legal
and Privacy.
Website ReDesign by Chaska Creative Web Hosting by Modo Web Design |
