Helping the Church in Chad rescue orphans and widows,
train leaders, and share
the Gospel

March 2009

Starting A Micro-loan Program in Chad

By Vivi Wickberg

You have probably heard the expression "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." This is a good idea as far as it goes, but a person may need money to buy their first fishing pole before they can go fishing. This is where the idea of micro-loans comes in. A micro-loan is a small loan given to someone who has a business idea, but has no money to put the idea into action.
 

"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."

A micro-loan can be as small as $50 and is given for a short period of time, sometimes only two to three months. The participants are trained and involved in Bible study with particular emphasis in business ethics. The participants are part of a group which is responsible for paying back each others' loans if someone within the group is not able to. This ensures that each member in the group promotes the businesses of the other group members within their communities, giving the businesses a better chance to succeed. 

Please pray that God will give us wisdom and guidance, as well as open the way ahead of us to begin this program in Chad. Pray for those who will be part of the advisory committee, especially for the loan officer who will be the main local person responsible for the program. These leaders are involved in selecting the loan participants and advising and encouraging them during the process.

Pray for those who will be the first to participate in this program, that God will direct us to them. The first participants will set the trend for the program. If they can become successful and repay the loans they receive, the program will be able to continue to expand to help others.

The goal of this program is to bring the widows and orphans participating in it to economic self-sufficiency, and for the program itself to become self financing after a number of years. Initial capital for the loans and start up expenses will be raised in the US, but once sufficient capital is in place, the income from the loans will begin to cover operating expenses.

The initiation of the micro-loan pilot program in Chad is planned for early May 2009.
 

Please pray that God will give us wisdom and guidance, as well as open the way ahead of us to begin this program in Chad.