What is it like being a Kiva Fellow? My week with 5 Loan officers and 100 Kiva Borrowers – Part 1

Have you ever wondered what Kiva Fellows really do on a daily basis?
Let me share with you one of my Kiva Fellow week.

On the menu of this week: new profiles, journals, client waiver, training, Cerise, blog, borrower verification and much more. Working with loan officers, Kiva Coordinator, and MFI management.

Every morning since I have been a KF, I always start with the same first 2 things: 1. Check fundraising status of my MFI to see whether we will hit the monthly target and 2. Check the average 5 emails I have received overnight from the other 28 KF around the world

Those are the only 2 predictable things in my KF assignment. For the rest, everyday is different and comes with a surprise…

Do the poor have dreams?/ A quoi rêvent les pauvres?

By Aurélie Dagneaux, KF11, Ecuador

One of my favorite questions when interviewing borrowers for new loans and journals (update on a loan), is: “What are your dreams and hopes for the future?”
Tough question, but on this one I always get an answer.
They all have dreams. YOU can help fulfill them.

Ma question préférée, lorsque j’interviewe des clients pour des nouveaux prêts ou pour des suivis de crédits existants, est : « Quels sont vos rêves pour le futur ? »
Question difficile, mais j’obtiens toujours une réponse.
lls ont tous des rêves. Et VOUS pouvez aider à les réaliser.

All I want for Christmas is: More Journaling

by Jed Goldstein (KF9)

This picture has absolutely nothing to do with the post, but is "Christmasy"

Here at Pearl Microfinance we have a pretty tough task ahead of us: JOURNALING, JOURNALING and more JOURNALING.  Don’t get me wrong, I love journaling just as much as the next guy, but when you are dealing with a microfinance vehicle that disburses 275,000$ per month in Kiva loans, that is a lot of loans to keep track of and a lot of loans to follow up on after the clients have fully repaid. Nonetheless, we remain committed.

A Glimpse of the Borrowers

By Hanh Tran, KF8 – Fund for Thanh Hoa Poor Women (FPW) – Vietnam

Visiting borrowers during the past three weeks has taught me that interviews can take place just about anywhere– standing in the middle of a noisy market, sitting on very short stools near a street stall or squatting on someone’s kitchen floor.

Earlier this week, Ms. Ha, a credit officer at the Fund for Thanh Hoa Poor Women (FPW), offered to take me to three repayment meetings. I grabbed my bag – which nowadays contains my handy Flip video camera, a notepad, my pocket dictionary, and borrower group photos – and we set off.

An hour later, we found ourselves at a lively market in Dong Son District. Searching for borrowers in between the rows of colorful fruits and vegetables, fresh cut flowers and delicate china turned out to be quite the task. With Ms. Ha’s expertise, we managed to track down all six women belonging to the 11-Don Son Group.

Our next stop was to the home of a first time borrower, Ms. Phuong. Once there, I spent time with a group of four women, asking questions and listening as they gossiped and teased each other.

The final meeting for the day was at a local Women’s Union center where I was able to catch a few short interviews as group members dashed in to make their monthly repayments and rushed back to work as quickly as they came.

If I could, I would spend hours talking to each borrower. I realize the questions that I am able to ask during the short amount of time I have with the women only offers a glimpse into their lives – a small chapter of the full story. Yet, in those few moments, there is a connection. The hours pass by quickly and at the end of the day, I have footage, pictures and pages of notes. Here are a two of their stories.