Talk microfinance, philanthropy over drinks

Wokai regularly holds similar events. Photos provided by Wokai.org

By Annie Wei

Some 50 people gathered at D-Lounge in Sanlitun, Tuesday to discuss microfinance, philanthropy, and corporate social responsibility over drinks. The event was hosted by Wokai, a US-based microfinance organization that provides small loans to impoverished Chinese citizens.

Some of the attendees wanted to join Wokai’s roster of volunteers; others were curious about theorganization that has attracted media attention both in China and the US. Many were inspired by Muhammad Yunus, a Bangladeshi economist, who established a bank that provided small loans to the poor on safe terms so they could help themselves. Yunus was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.

At the gathering, Sara Jane Ho, Wokai’s Asia business development associate, compared the development of microfinance in China to thatin countries like India and Bangladesh. She also talked about how Wokai helps farmers in Inner Mongolia and Sichuan, and the challenges of running a foreign nongovernment organization in China.

Calvin Chin, founder of Qifang, an organization that provides student loans, was a guest speaker and fielded questions about the trust issue between students and loan givers. Chin said Qifang does background check and verifies personal information through the borrower’s school, and that the loans are given directly to the school to prevent misappropriation of funds.

Wokai was established in 2008 by two American women who studied in China and wanted to help the country’s 200 million citizens who live on less than 7 yuan a day. For more information about Wokai and Qifang, visit wokai.org and qifang.cn.