Opportunity International

General Information

Opportunity International started as a world pioneer of microfinance being one of the first microfinance networks. Their purpose is to provide opportunities for people in chronic poverty to transform their lives. The strategy behind their work is to create jobs, stimulate small businesses, and strengthen communities among the poor. Their method is to work through indigenous partner organizations that provide small business loans, training, and counsel. Committed to fulfilling Jesus Christ's call to serve the poor, Opportunity dedicates itself to the core values of respect, commitment to the poor, integrity, and stewardship.

Opportunity’s lending methodology revolves around their trust bank concept. Trust Banks have proven to be an extremely successful lending method for encouraging holistic development (economic, personal, family, community, and spiritual development). A self-selected group of 15-40 community members (mostly women) jointly access loans ($50-$500), co-guarantee each other’s loans, and engage in educational and social activities under the guidance of their Opportunity International Loan Officer. No collateral is required. The Trust Bank system is most effective in reaching large numbers of very poor entrepreneurs where small loans can have a great impact. Loan officers work with groups, thus decreasing operating expenses and achieving program viability and sustainability.

Opportunity International strives to reach the world's poorest people through its microenterprise development programs. Recognizing the large majority of the world's poorest people are women and understanding women’s predisposition to contribute to the well-being of their families, Opportunity makes it a priority to support programs that serve the particular needs of women.

History

In 1971, two businesspeople on two different continents begin two separate programs attempting to alleviate desperate poverty. Al Whittaker, former president of Bristol Myers International Corporation, founded the first Opportunity International program in Latin America. Australian entrepreneur David Bussau founded a similar program in Indonesia. Three years later, the two programs united.

Amid the weak economies and vast income gaps of the developing world, helping the poor find employment was nearly impossible. But the genius of microenterprise development was not in finding work, but in helping poor entrepreneurs create or expand their own businesses.

In 1992, Opportunity International began to focus on serving entrepreneurs at even lower levels of poverty. The Philippines program began to test the Trust Bank group lending method, and the Women's Opportunity Fund was formed and started to test and refine the Trust Bank group loan program across countries and cultures. Through small loans and business training, one person after another could begin to reverse the downward spiral of poverty and become providers for their families and leaders in their communities.

Convinced that no one group can tackle the issues of poverty alone, Opportunity began developing partners in various regions around the world - independent, self-governing organizations with a similar heartbeat. Linked together in 1998 as the Opportunity International Network - they now number 42 organizations in 27 developing countries with support partners in six countries (Australia, New Zealand, United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and Germany).

In 2000, Opportunity launched into what would become another distinction of its heritage. With more than 200,000 clients worldwide, Opportunity began establishing formal financial institutions (FFI) to broaden the financial services it can provide. FFIs take the form of commercial banks, development banks or credit unions and can accept deposits, borrow money and accept investments.

Opportunity now serves a half-million clients annually and expects to be serving 1 million by 2007, and 2 million by 2010. By addressing and transforming poverty, Opportunity International continues to change the course of generations, communities and countries - person by person.