The Rotary Club of Dartmouth has been a Kiva supporter since 2010 when we loaned our first $25 to a group of agricultural entrepreneurs in Africa. Since then we have helped support almost 40 entrepreneurs around the world.

But what is Kiva?

Kiva is a non-profit organization that connects lenders and borrowers in order to alleviate poverty in the borrower's region.
Kiva works with micro-finance institutions (field partners) around the world to identify suitable entrepreneurs (borrowers). Those field partners disburse loans of up to $5000 to the entrepreneurs, then post the details on www.kiva.org. Lenders, be they individuals or clubs like ours, then choose an entrepreneur to support with a minimum of $25. Over time, the entrepreneurs repay their loans to the lenders, who can withdraw their investment or re-loan it.

The Rotary Club of Dartmouth has helped fund everything from chicken farms, to grocery stores, to shoe stalls, to cow manure purchases! We have supported entrepreneurs in: Armenia, Benin, Cambodia, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Mongolia, Palestine, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Senegal, Tajikistan and Uganda.
As our entrepreneurs continue to repay their loans, we will continue to re-loan to more and more entrepreneurs.

And that’s how $25 can go a long, long way to alleviating poverty.
                                  
                                              One or our entrepreneurs (Flor de Mburukuya)

Learn more about Kiva at http://www.kiva.org/

Learn more about our club's involvements at http://www.kiva.org/team/rotary_club_of_dartmouth_nova_scotia

Anyone can join - you don't need to be a Rotarian to make a difference.
But if you are, that difference will be bigger, go further and feel better.