Donations & Microloans for the World’s Poor

The World Bank points out that the economic crisis is becoming a calamity for the poorest of the world’s people. Indeed, even as the developed world speaks of a recovery soon (well, once this swine flu setback is overcome), those with the least access to wealth are likely to continue suffering long after the rest of the world has recovered from global recession.

I like the idea of helping out. My church has an education fund aimed at helping young people in third-world countries improve their skills and knowledge in the hopes that they can get better jobs. I like to contribute regularly to this fund.

Another idea is to offer microloans to those in developing nations. Grameen Bank and Kiva.org both offer programs that allow ordinary people to make small loans to entrepreneurs. These microloans have affordable interest rates. And, in third-world countries, $500 or $1,000 can make a much bigger difference than it does here. You can partially fund a microloan with as little as $25.

It is true that many of us are struggling here. However, many are struggling much worse, and it is an accepted tenet of good personal finance that once you have what you need, you start helping others.

image source: Wikipedia