opportunity.org
partner with us to
our vision is a world in which all people have the opportunity to provide for their families and build a fulfilling life.
invest in women
our belief is that small-scale entrepreneurs can be big change agents in overcoming global poverty.
our mission
goal: $50 million by 2015, impacting two million women
is to empower people to work their way out of chronic poverty, transforming their lives, their children’s futures and their communities.
the need Women make up the majority of those living in poverty. They face many legal and cultural inequities and are often excluded from the formal economy. These barriers put women at a disadvantage and make them more vulnerable to gender inequality or even forced labor or violence. Despite these realities, women have consistently demonstrated inspiring resilience and determination to break free from a life of poverty. Numerous studies, and our own experience, show that financial services extended to women have a significant impact on the quality of life for their families, especially their children.
answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will empower women living in poverty to develop new roles as income earners and leaders within their community. With access to transformational training, and critical savings, loans and insurance products, our clients are able to build financial security and create stability for their families.
fight poverty
our method
your support will help
is to provide microfinance services, including lending, savings, insurance and transformational training, to people in need. To do this, we build and work through sustainable, local microfinance institutions.
• Fund new loans for two million women globally
our motivation
• Provide women worldwide with business skills and personal development training, empowering them to become leaders in their communities
is to respond to Jesus Christ’s call to love and serve the poor.
Above: Ceramics businesswoman Concepcion Valenzuela in the Philippines. On the cover: Sugarcane farmer Loy Naigaga (L) and Relationship Officer Phiona Ndikibuliraani in Uganda.
• Offer savings services to more women, enabling financial autonomy and planning for the future • Expand outreach where the need is greatest, such as in the Democratic Republic of Congo where millions of women need opportunity 2122 York Road, Suite 150, Oak Brook, Illinois 60523 > 800.793.9455
Photos from left to right: Progress Trust Group members in Colombia; Banana vendor Mwajuma in Tanzania.
Opportunity International provides access to savings, small business loans, insurance and training to over 4 million people working their way out of poverty in the developing world. Clients in more than 20 countries use these financial services to start or expand a business, provide for their families, create jobs for their neighbors and build a safety net for the future. Opportunity International is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and serves all people regardless of race, religion, ethnicity or gender. Printed on paper containing post-consumer content.
©2012
Opportunity International 505.1.1012
Opportunity International is committed to using your donation in the most effective way possible. When combined with gifts from others, your donation is multiplied throughout the developing world, providing the greatest number of opportunities for people living in poverty to transform their lives.
unlocking potential together
opportunity.org
partner with us to
our vision is a world in which all people have the opportunity to provide for their families and build a fulfilling life.
invest in women
our belief is that small-scale entrepreneurs can be big change agents in overcoming global poverty.
our mission
goal: $50 million by 2015, impacting two million women
is to empower people to work their way out of chronic poverty, transforming their lives, their children’s futures and their communities.
the need Women make up the majority of those living in poverty. They face many legal and cultural inequities and are often excluded from the formal economy. These barriers put women at a disadvantage and make them more vulnerable to gender inequality or even forced labor or violence. Despite these realities, women have consistently demonstrated inspiring resilience and determination to break free from a life of poverty. Numerous studies, and our own experience, show that financial services extended to women have a significant impact on the quality of life for their families, especially their children.
answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will empower women living in poverty to develop new roles as income earners and leaders within their community. With access to transformational training, and critical savings, loans and insurance products, our clients are able to build financial security and create stability for their families.
fight poverty
our method
your support will help
is to provide microfinance services, including lending, savings, insurance and transformational training, to people in need. To do this, we build and work through sustainable, local microfinance institutions.
• Fund new loans for two million women globally
our motivation
• Provide women worldwide with business skills and personal development training, empowering them to become leaders in their communities
is to respond to Jesus Christ’s call to love and serve the poor.
Above: Ceramics businesswoman Concepcion Valenzuela in the Philippines. On the cover: Sugarcane farmer Loy Naigaga (L) and Relationship Officer Phiona Ndikibuliraani in Uganda.
• Offer savings services to more women, enabling financial autonomy and planning for the future • Expand outreach where the need is greatest, such as in the Democratic Republic of Congo where millions of women need opportunity 2122 York Road, Suite 150, Oak Brook, Illinois 60523 > 800.793.9455
Photos from left to right: Progress Trust Group members in Colombia; Banana vendor Mwajuma in Tanzania.
Opportunity International provides access to savings, small business loans, insurance and training to over 4 million people working their way out of poverty in the developing world. Clients in more than 20 countries use these financial services to start or expand a business, provide for their families, create jobs for their neighbors and build a safety net for the future. Opportunity International is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and serves all people regardless of race, religion, ethnicity or gender. Printed on paper containing post-consumer content.
©2012
Opportunity International 505.1.1012
Opportunity International is committed to using your donation in the most effective way possible. When combined with gifts from others, your donation is multiplied throughout the developing world, providing the greatest number of opportunities for people living in poverty to transform their lives.
unlocking potential together
invest in LEADERS
create opportunity
goal: $5 million by 2015, impacting our global capacity
Your investment will enable us to expand powerful microfinance services that help people unlock their potential and give them the means to move beyond poverty.
The need Your support will help • Fund loans and savings services for one million farmers in Africa
invest in EDUCATIng children
invest in FARMERS
goal: $25 million by 2015, impacting 550,000 children The need
goal: $36 million by 2015, impacting one million farmers
• Enable expansion of satellite branches, kiosks, point-of-sale and cell phone banking for our rural clients •
Build out protections for farmer families, including tailored savings programs and crop insurance, as well as establish relationships with input suppliers and crop buyers
The need
Education is the single largest determining factor for future economic status. Yet, 130 million young people worldwide are not in school—and 70 percent are girls. If a girl cannot complete secondary school, she is at a higher risk of illiteracy, HIV and early marriage, offering little chance of reaching her potential.
answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will bring new educational opportunities to children in impoverished neighborhoods. With financial support and business training, school proprietors can build schools and hire teachers, as well as add classrooms, meal services and lavatories. Opportunity’s school fee loans help parents with unpredictable incomes pay for tuition.
Your support will help • Fund school proprietor loans impacting 500,000 children in 2,000 schools • Provide school fee loans to help the families of 50,000 children afford tuition • D evelop education-specific savings and insurance tools
Poverty has a firm grip on rural areas in sub-Saharan Africa and millions lack access to sufficient high quality food. Even where natural resources are ample, people suffer from chronic malnourishment due to lack of access to financing, quality seed, fertilizer and distribution channels.
answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will help small-scale farmers move from subsistence to commercial farming so they can feed their families and their communities. Opportunity provides these farmers with affordable, convenient agricultural finance services and the technical assistance they need to grow more food and increase their profits. Our strategy engages with farmers at every level of the value chain—from planting to harvesting to selling crops—to ensure their success.
Photos from left to right: Student Alice Mugena in Uganda; Rice farmer Elina Uwingeneye in Rwanda; Opportunity Bank Branch Manager Grace Quiobe in the Philippines; Opportunity mobile bank in Uganda.
To reach the nearly two billion people who lack access to banking and financial services, capable, dedicated local microfinance leaders are needed around the world. Yet often these professionals lack the opportunity to develop leadership skills, so potential is lost and communities suffer.
Answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will help people build their capacity in business and in life. For us, ‘hiring from within’ means identifying and developing talented people and cultivating them for leadership roles. Your financial support will help Opportunity continue to develop human capital, one of the most important contributions we make to the communities we serve.
invest in TECHNOLOGY
Your gift to Opportunity will help our clients overcome these obstacles by bringing our services where few, if any, exist—reaching the most
• Provide development and vision-setting programs for senior management and other microfinance professionals • Provide growth and learning opportunities to entry-level managers through the Emerging Leaders program
Cheaper: utilizing established and emerging technologies that increase efficiency and reduce operational costs and expenses for clients
The need
Answering the need
• Recruit and develop a global talent pipeline, creating a pool of leaders capable of taking on key positions within Opportunity
Safer: protecting clients with cashless banking that reduces the risk of theft and provides a safe place to deposit, earn interest and grow savings
goal: $15 million by 2015, breaking barriers to access
Throughout the developing world, people are excluded from access to financial services by barriers like illiteracy, expensive transportation and geographic isolation.
Your support will help
Your support will help marginalized, and engaging clients in their own communities. Opportunity’s strategy maximizes the use of client-centered technology based on four principles:
• Fund efficient solutions, like cell phone banking, to provide low-cost, secure banking to formerly disenfranchised clients
Closer: bringing services to our clients’ neighborhoods so they can keep their businesses open and avoid costly travel to the bank
• Establish points of access within one kilometer of a client’s home or business
Wider: increasing financial inclusion with cell phone banking and other affordable options
• Develop a new generation of skilled IT leaders
• Enable us to migrate to Cloud-based systems
invest in LEADERS
create opportunity
goal: $5 million by 2015, impacting our global capacity
Your investment will enable us to expand powerful microfinance services that help people unlock their potential and give them the means to move beyond poverty.
The need Your support will help • Fund loans and savings services for one million farmers in Africa
invest in EDUCATIng children
invest in FARMERS
goal: $25 million by 2015, impacting 550,000 children The need
goal: $36 million by 2015, impacting one million farmers
• Enable expansion of satellite branches, kiosks, point-of-sale and cell phone banking for our rural clients •
Build out protections for farmer families, including tailored savings programs and crop insurance, as well as establish relationships with input suppliers and crop buyers
The need
Education is the single largest determining factor for future economic status. Yet, 130 million young people worldwide are not in school—and 70 percent are girls. If a girl cannot complete secondary school, she is at a higher risk of illiteracy, HIV and early marriage, offering little chance of reaching her potential.
answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will bring new educational opportunities to children in impoverished neighborhoods. With financial support and business training, school proprietors can build schools and hire teachers, as well as add classrooms, meal services and lavatories. Opportunity’s school fee loans help parents with unpredictable incomes pay for tuition.
Your support will help • Fund school proprietor loans impacting 500,000 children in 2,000 schools • Provide school fee loans to help the families of 50,000 children afford tuition • D evelop education-specific savings and insurance tools
Poverty has a firm grip on rural areas in sub-Saharan Africa and millions lack access to sufficient high quality food. Even where natural resources are ample, people suffer from chronic malnourishment due to lack of access to financing, quality seed, fertilizer and distribution channels.
answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will help small-scale farmers move from subsistence to commercial farming so they can feed their families and their communities. Opportunity provides these farmers with affordable, convenient agricultural finance services and the technical assistance they need to grow more food and increase their profits. Our strategy engages with farmers at every level of the value chain—from planting to harvesting to selling crops—to ensure their success.
Photos from left to right: Student Alice Mugena in Uganda; Rice farmer Elina Uwingeneye in Rwanda; Opportunity Bank Branch Manager Grace Quiobe in the Philippines; Opportunity mobile bank in Uganda.
To reach the nearly two billion people who lack access to banking and financial services, capable, dedicated local microfinance leaders are needed around the world. Yet often these professionals lack the opportunity to develop leadership skills, so potential is lost and communities suffer.
Answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will help people build their capacity in business and in life. For us, ‘hiring from within’ means identifying and developing talented people and cultivating them for leadership roles. Your financial support will help Opportunity continue to develop human capital, one of the most important contributions we make to the communities we serve.
invest in TECHNOLOGY
Your gift to Opportunity will help our clients overcome these obstacles by bringing our services where few, if any, exist—reaching the most
• Provide development and vision-setting programs for senior management and other microfinance professionals • Provide growth and learning opportunities to entry-level managers through the Emerging Leaders program
Cheaper: utilizing established and emerging technologies that increase efficiency and reduce operational costs and expenses for clients
The need
Answering the need
• Recruit and develop a global talent pipeline, creating a pool of leaders capable of taking on key positions within Opportunity
Safer: protecting clients with cashless banking that reduces the risk of theft and provides a safe place to deposit, earn interest and grow savings
goal: $15 million by 2015, breaking barriers to access
Throughout the developing world, people are excluded from access to financial services by barriers like illiteracy, expensive transportation and geographic isolation.
Your support will help
Your support will help marginalized, and engaging clients in their own communities. Opportunity’s strategy maximizes the use of client-centered technology based on four principles:
• Fund efficient solutions, like cell phone banking, to provide low-cost, secure banking to formerly disenfranchised clients
Closer: bringing services to our clients’ neighborhoods so they can keep their businesses open and avoid costly travel to the bank
• Establish points of access within one kilometer of a client’s home or business
Wider: increasing financial inclusion with cell phone banking and other affordable options
• Develop a new generation of skilled IT leaders
• Enable us to migrate to Cloud-based systems
invest in LEADERS
create opportunity
goal: $5 million by 2015, impacting our global capacity
Your investment will enable us to expand powerful microfinance services that help people unlock their potential and give them the means to move beyond poverty.
The need Your support will help • Fund loans and savings services for one million farmers in Africa
invest in EDUCATIng children
invest in FARMERS
goal: $25 million by 2015, impacting 550,000 children The need
goal: $36 million by 2015, impacting one million farmers
• Enable expansion of satellite branches, kiosks, point-of-sale and cell phone banking for our rural clients •
Build out protections for farmer families, including tailored savings programs and crop insurance, as well as establish relationships with input suppliers and crop buyers
The need
Education is the single largest determining factor for future economic status. Yet, 130 million young people worldwide are not in school—and 70 percent are girls. If a girl cannot complete secondary school, she is at a higher risk of illiteracy, HIV and early marriage, offering little chance of reaching her potential.
answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will bring new educational opportunities to children in impoverished neighborhoods. With financial support and business training, school proprietors can build schools and hire teachers, as well as add classrooms, meal services and lavatories. Opportunity’s school fee loans help parents with unpredictable incomes pay for tuition.
Your support will help • Fund school proprietor loans impacting 500,000 children in 2,000 schools • Provide school fee loans to help the families of 50,000 children afford tuition • D evelop education-specific savings and insurance tools
Poverty has a firm grip on rural areas in sub-Saharan Africa and millions lack access to sufficient high quality food. Even where natural resources are ample, people suffer from chronic malnourishment due to lack of access to financing, quality seed, fertilizer and distribution channels.
answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will help small-scale farmers move from subsistence to commercial farming so they can feed their families and their communities. Opportunity provides these farmers with affordable, convenient agricultural finance services and the technical assistance they need to grow more food and increase their profits. Our strategy engages with farmers at every level of the value chain—from planting to harvesting to selling crops—to ensure their success.
Photos from left to right: Student Alice Mugena in Uganda; Rice farmer Elina Uwingeneye in Rwanda; Opportunity Bank Branch Manager Grace Quiobe in the Philippines; Opportunity mobile bank in Uganda.
To reach the nearly two billion people who lack access to banking and financial services, capable, dedicated local microfinance leaders are needed around the world. Yet often these professionals lack the opportunity to develop leadership skills, so potential is lost and communities suffer.
Answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will help people build their capacity in business and in life. For us, ‘hiring from within’ means identifying and developing talented people and cultivating them for leadership roles. Your financial support will help Opportunity continue to develop human capital, one of the most important contributions we make to the communities we serve.
invest in TECHNOLOGY
Your gift to Opportunity will help our clients overcome these obstacles by bringing our services where few, if any, exist—reaching the most
• Provide development and vision-setting programs for senior management and other microfinance professionals • Provide growth and learning opportunities to entry-level managers through the Emerging Leaders program
Cheaper: utilizing established and emerging technologies that increase efficiency and reduce operational costs and expenses for clients
The need
Answering the need
• Recruit and develop a global talent pipeline, creating a pool of leaders capable of taking on key positions within Opportunity
Safer: protecting clients with cashless banking that reduces the risk of theft and provides a safe place to deposit, earn interest and grow savings
goal: $15 million by 2015, breaking barriers to access
Throughout the developing world, people are excluded from access to financial services by barriers like illiteracy, expensive transportation and geographic isolation.
Your support will help
Your support will help marginalized, and engaging clients in their own communities. Opportunity’s strategy maximizes the use of client-centered technology based on four principles:
• Fund efficient solutions, like cell phone banking, to provide low-cost, secure banking to formerly disenfranchised clients
Closer: bringing services to our clients’ neighborhoods so they can keep their businesses open and avoid costly travel to the bank
• Establish points of access within one kilometer of a client’s home or business
Wider: increasing financial inclusion with cell phone banking and other affordable options
• Develop a new generation of skilled IT leaders
• Enable us to migrate to Cloud-based systems
opportunity.org
partner with us to
our vision is a world in which all people have the opportunity to provide for their families and build a fulfilling life.
invest in women
our belief is that small-scale entrepreneurs can be big change agents in overcoming global poverty.
our mission
goal: $50 million by 2015, impacting two million women
is to empower people to work their way out of chronic poverty, transforming their lives, their children’s futures and their communities.
the need Women make up the majority of those living in poverty. They face many legal and cultural inequities and are often excluded from the formal economy. These barriers put women at a disadvantage and make them more vulnerable to gender inequality or even forced labor or violence. Despite these realities, women have consistently demonstrated inspiring resilience and determination to break free from a life of poverty. Numerous studies, and our own experience, show that financial services extended to women have a significant impact on the quality of life for their families, especially their children.
answering the need Your gift to Opportunity will empower women living in poverty to develop new roles as income earners and leaders within their community. With access to transformational training, and critical savings, loans and insurance products, our clients are able to build financial security and create stability for their families.
fight poverty
our method
your support will help
is to provide microfinance services, including lending, savings, insurance and transformational training, to people in need. To do this, we build and work through sustainable, local microfinance institutions.
• Fund new loans for two million women globally
our motivation
• Provide women worldwide with business skills and personal development training, empowering them to become leaders in their communities
is to respond to Jesus Christ’s call to love and serve the poor.
Above: Ceramics businesswoman Concepcion Valenzuela in the Philippines. On the cover: Sugarcane farmer Loy Naigaga (L) and Relationship Officer Phiona Ndikibuliraani in Uganda.
• Offer savings services to more women, enabling financial autonomy and planning for the future • Expand outreach where the need is greatest, such as in the Democratic Republic of Congo where millions of women need opportunity 2122 York Road, Suite 150, Oak Brook, Illinois 60523 > 800.793.9455
Photos from left to right: Progress Trust Group members in Colombia; Banana vendor Mwajuma in Tanzania.
Opportunity International provides access to savings, small business loans, insurance and training to over 4 million people working their way out of poverty in the developing world. Clients in more than 20 countries use these financial services to start or expand a business, provide for their families, create jobs for their neighbors and build a safety net for the future. Opportunity International is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and serves all people regardless of race, religion, ethnicity or gender. Printed on paper containing post-consumer content.
©2012
Opportunity International 505.1.1012
Opportunity International is committed to using your donation in the most effective way possible. When combined with gifts from others, your donation is multiplied throughout the developing world, providing the greatest number of opportunities for people living in poverty to transform their lives.
unlocking potential together