microfinance

Thank You for Creating a World of Opportunity

As I sit here on the day before Thanksgiving, what comes to mind is the over 250 students on Vittana right now who are poised to transform their lives by continuing their education. Whether it’s Omar Ahmad‘s desire to become a civil engineer in Jordan or Lidia Severina Aban‘s goal

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How Different Are We?

by Stefan Tangen

As a Vittana Fellow I find myself often comparing my educational experience and my life in the United States to what I see on the ground here in the Philippines. Although the Philippines is a far cry from Washington State there are still many similarities between my life there and

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3…2…1…Take Off!

by Stefan Tangen

I have been on an education high recently and its because of a very exciting event that occurred here in the Philippines. Since my arrival, Vittana’s partner here in the province of Misamis Occidental officially launched its student loan product! Our partner, Paglaum Multi-Purpose Cooperative (PMPC), held the event to

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Video: graduates tell their stories

by jfoster

Here is a short compilation of graduates telling how Vittana loans changed their lives.

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How $200 Put a Woman’s Life On Hold

by jfoster

For me, it was never really a question of whether or not I could go to college. Sure, money has always been tight in the Foster household and finding a way to pay for college for their four sons was never easy for my parents, but it wasn’t optional either.

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Fomenting a revolution with AFODENIC

by jfoster

I am stationed at an ideal place to measure the impact of Vittana loans on students and their families. AFODENIC in Nicaragua is one of Vittana’s most established partners, having worked together since 2009. More than 100 students have graduated college because of Vittana loans through AFODENIC. I’ll tell you

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Changed lives

by jfoster

More than 100 students have graduated college with Vittana loans in Nicaragua, so that’s really cool. I have the good fortune of getting to talk to them about the positive impact our loans have on their lives, which is constantly inspiring. They’ve all worked hard and made sacrifices to get

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Hard numbers detail Vittana’s impact

by jfoster

It’s been clear for a long time that Vittana’s loans were changing lives. Stories filtered in from students around the world who wouldn’t have graduated college without a loan and who are now living better lives because of their college degree. Still, there’s something to be said for hard numbers.

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ASKI: The Face of the New Filipino Economy

by kmunn

It began with an assassination. Elected to the Philippine Senate in 1967, Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. was a staunch opponent of the then President Ferdinand Marcos. Marcos was an authoritarian ruler who declared martial law in 1972 and subsequently took over a large number of businesses, contributing greatly to a

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Paradise for Some

by Charlie Gale

The end of the semester at Teachers College in New York found my classmates and I scrambling to prepare for summer internships. It was a stressful but exciting time, an opportunity to put into practice the knowledge and skills we had gleaned from a rigorous year of academic work. Indeed

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