Have you ever heard of KIVA?  I only just stumbled upon it a few moments ago and I don’t think I’ve ever felt this enthused about an online project in ages.  I’m not sure if I ever have felt this optimistic and happy about anything I’ve seen online ever. The worst part of this is that I’m so excited that I can’t even really think of what I should say in particular about this so I’ll get the basics out there right off the bat.

KIVA uses a network of micro-lenders around the developing world to disperse funds from charitably minded individuals via the web.

KIVA provides access to micro-loans for those who need to do simple things like repair a taxi-cab, fertilize a field or otherwise operate a business the contributes to a local economy in a developing nation.  These micro-loans provide people in the developing world with real opportunities for bettering their own lot in life as well as those in their communities by way of creating jobs and providing community services.

The lending membership of KIVA is made up of people like you and me.  You can use a credit card or pay pal account (which provides their services to KIVA free of charge) to forward money to micro-loan organizations around the world.  When the micro-loans are repaid, you get credited the same amount which can either be refunded to your method of initial payment or re-loaned to another third world entrepreneur.

While there are some criticisms levelled at KIVA, (High interest rates being chief among them) I find the project and the results to be entirely admirable.  In my own view, it’s an incredible privilege to be able to access a lending program that helps people out and it’s something I’m exceptionally psyched about.

There’s only one hurdle I have to jump and I should be jumping it soon.  It’s been rough becoming financial solvent lately and things like my truck’s transmission being puked on by my bank account didn’t help.  That being said, I’m still on my way and the nearest financial horizons are looking bright and full of colour.

It is my intention to devote $5,000 to KIVA donating through the “Atheist, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, Secular Humanists and the Non-Religious” lending team.  Incidentally, this is the largest group on the KIVA website.  Established on August 28th in 2008, the “lending team” has loaned out a total of over $1.18 Million USD and has over 7,000 members.  It is the largest group of lenders on KIVA and I will be happy to participate.

While I would love to see a bunch of people with thousands of dollars flowing through KIVA, $5,000 is only my own goal.  I would be thrilled to know of anyone else who decides to jump in with a bit of their own money to simply lend a portion of a $200 loan to buy fertilizer, stock a local grocery store or expand a bread making business in Peru.  $25 for instance, makes for a great help toward some one’s future success in the developing world and it’s not a heck of a lot of money.  Even building a kitchen in one’s home to raise their standard of living is important and often facilitated by KIVA lenders.

I hope to be in a position to establish my $5,000 KIVA budget by Jan’ 01, 2010 which is just a month and a bit away.  In the mean time, care to challenge my commitment by starting earlier?

A Fistful Of Dollars: The Story of a Kiva.org Loan from Kieran Ball on Vimeo.

Next step is convincing a bank to issue a credit card that charges no fee for transactions through KIVA.