FORGE’s microlending project provides small business loans to individuals who wish to create economic change through self-reliance and self-employment. Individually tailoring loans to the needs of each borrower, FORGe’s microlending project serves those who could not otherwise establish credit. Loan by loan, the lending project steadily reduces poverty, increases food security, alleviates dependence on international aid, and allows individuals affected by war to regain control over their lives.
The microlending project invests in individuals to build thriving businesses and to bootstrap themselves out of poverty. A simple bakery or tailor’s shop can create a ripple effect that brings about financial and economic stability to everyone they touch. Everyday the staff of this unique lending project witness responsible clients becoming effective community leaders with goods, resources and insight to offer their neighbors.
All Meheba residents over the age of 18 can apply to participate in microlending opportunities, business education, and savings services regardless of their gender or financial history. Currently, the project serves men and women from Angola, Rwanda, Burundi, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
• Providing microloans of money and fertilizer to help local entrepreneurs and farmers begin a profitable business
• Taining each client in an extensive 8-week business training curriculum with units including budgeting, accounting, donor relations and savings
• Providing a secure venue for refugees to store their money free from the threat of robbery, damage or loss.
• To reduce poverty within Meheba
• To endow the Meheba community with entrepreneurial skills and opportunities
• To expand banking and finance opportunities within the Meheba community
*Because of budget constraints, FORGE has temporarily scaled back the scope of many of its projects. The project descriptions and budgets seen here describe the project's typical operations, and might therefor not reflect the current situation on the ground. Once sufficient funding is secured for each project, its operations will be expanded back to those reflected in this description and budget.