Job creation is a proven way out of financial poverty. Poverty was cut in half—from 52 to 26 percent—between 1981 and 2005 and can continue to decline. Investing in growing small businesses sets families on a sustainable pathway out of poverty.
Background:Only approximately one in every 65 Dominicans has a bank account. Financial services are not readily available—particularly for those living outside the Dominican Republic’s major cities. Loan officers travel to the regions where their clients live, providing vital financial services and basic business training in their local homes, churches, or community centers. Each loan officer works with more than 200 clients.
In the Dominican Republic, $2,500 covers one loan officer’s salary for a year. Each loan officer works with more than 200 aspiring entrepreneurs, providing small business loans, basic business training, and mentoring and coaching. This vital staff member is the microfinance institution’s closest connection to the clients, and it is his/her job to ensure that each client uses the opportunity she’s been given to invest in her business and generate income to support her family.
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