Microloans for Women

Microfinance is a widely used strategy to promote women's economic empowerment, especially in developing countries where women face multiple barriers to access formal financial services. Our Microloans program offers small loans without collateral, along with training and mentoring in business skills, to women caring for a child living with HIV. These loans enable the women to start or expand their own income-generating activities, such as trading, farming, or handicrafts. In addition to helping these women meet their basic needs, such as food, medicine, rent, and education, these loans also provide them economic stability, autonomy, and self-esteem – critical ingredients in negotiating safe-sex and preventing HIV infections.

Repayment rates in our Microloan program vastly exceed that for traditional banking. For stories of women whose lives have been transformed by our microloans and training, read here.

This program is located in Matero and neighboring compounds in Lusaka, Zambia. Matero is one of the largest and poorest compounds and is characterized with a high incidence of HIV, AIDS, and malaria and an unemployment rate upwards of 60%. Most residents live on less than $2 per day - defined as extreme poverty by the UN.

Our vision is that vulnerable women, living in impoverished communities impacted by HIV, are empowered and famileis are sustaianable and more self-reliant. Our mission is to create a community of successful women entrepreneurs. To achieve this mission, we launched a women's empowerment program in an impoverished neighborhood in Lusaka, Zambia. 

The goals of our women's empowerment are: (i) equip women with the tools to run a successful business, (ii) create conditions for women to be socially empowered, and (iii) ensure that the women have gathered enough capital and savings so they can continue to operate a profitable business even after graduating from the program. Here are stories/testimonials of two entrepreneurs enrolled in this program. 

Our program is unique as it is designed for women who are taking care of HIV+ family members, and may be living with HIV themselves. Second, it is completely integrated with our pediatric HIV care, malaria prevention, and Safe Park programs, so we are able to support a family in multiple ways. For example, micro loans recipients are encouraged to enroll their HIV+ children in our pediatric HIV care program. If enrolled, the child receives food, medicine and a package of life-saving healthcare services. In addition, the loan recipient is provided with mosquito bed nets to keep the family free from malaria, and the child is encouraged to participate in our “Safe Park” program. Supporting first time women entrepreneurs in multiple ways also increases the probability of success of their business and leads to higher repayment rates. Third, business training and ongoing training and support is provided till the loan recipient graduates, about 24-30 months after enrollment.