Giving the Gift of Food

I recently just started my own Kiva account through Kiva.org. My husband has had one for years and I had been meaning to start my own. For those who don’t know, Kiva is a charity organization, where 100% of the proceeds that you lend, go to the recipients. Kiva’s purpose is to help “alleviate poverty” throughout the world. How does it work? You lend money to people in need who are trying to start or finance their own businesses (i.e. you help them in getting a loan). Once the borrower’s goal is reached, they can begin working and paying back the loan, which you can, then, relend the returned money to others in need! Simple as pie!

There are individuals (or groups) on Kiva who need loans so they may buy new machines for their furniture making businesses or aid them in purchasing fabrics for their clothing stores. By loaning money, you can help people support their families and their communities.

So how on earth does this relate to my food related blog? Well, I have made five loans, recently, for agriculture related businesses! Agriculture is a difficult line of work that can be rather tricky and unreliable due to problems such as draught, climate change, disease (of plants or livestock), and flooding, among other disasters that can occur. Humans (mostly/but not entirely) are no longer hunter gatherers so we rely on agriculture for our survival. We have to get food from somewhere!

I have lent money to: (1) a middle aged widow in Kyrgyzstan so she may purchase more livestock to help her sell more dairy and meat, (2) a group of women, in Senegal, who wish to purchase chickens to breed and sell at the market, (3) another group or women, in Paraguay, who need to purchase livestock, (4) a 64 year old rice farmer, and father of 7, in Rwanda, who needs to buy fertilizers for his farm, and (5) a young couple trying to buy cacao plants for their farm in Peru.

[Note: Yes, I did lend money to livestock farmers. I am a vegetarian but it doesn’t mean I disapprove of others eating meat. It is a personal choice, involving multiple factors. I would never press/harass others to become a vegetarian. Frankly, that is just not how I roll. For many small farmers, this is their only means of making ends meet- they are not part of some giant, evil meat corporation.]

Kiva is a fantastic way to help people get the extra push they need to help them succeed in their endeavors, especially in poor areas where people are already struggling with so much. I’m so glad I (finally) got around to starting an account and helping those who need it!

http://www.kiva.org/