We officially started the activities of the foundation in May 2005.

Seeing the harrowing and hopeless situation in Cambodia first hand initiated first and immediate action. We came across a woman begging on the streets with her four children and wanted to give her a barbeque and corn to sell.

That started the idea. What we wanted to achieve is a way to enable the mother to take care of herself and her family and not just give money to some poor street kids. No goal was ever achieved without simply getting to action, hence Micro credits for Mothers.

Do you charge interest?
We team up with local partners and advise them to levy interest on the loans as a means to cover their cost. They are not required to pay the interest back to Micro credits for Mothers. We do set a maximum to the interest charged. Some of our local partners choose to waive the interest as they prefer to charge the participants in other ways (e.g. work within the community) or because their Buddhist belief does not allow them to charge interest. Our local partners are free to make such decisions.

Why do you focus on women?
Micro credit for Mothers supports the United Nations' point of view about this:

"In a world where most poor people are women, studies have shown that access to financial services has improved the status of women within the family and the community. Women have become more assertive and confident. Furthermore, as a result of microfinance, women own assets, including land and housing, play a stronger role in decision-making, and take on leadership roles in their communities."

The UN Microfinance report (2002) summarizes the reasons for giving micro credits to women especially as follows:
because the poorest households relying more heavily on womens income;
because [it] not only benefits the women but also their families (and communities).

Can men apply for a loan?
Let's explain this by using the following example. When it is common practice in a certain country that only men operate rickshaws, and we receive an application for such a loan from a married woman, we certainly entertain the request. However, we do issue the loan to the woman involved, not the man, because we believe in the honesty and seriousness of the woman. She knows exactly what is right and good for her family!

Are you not afraid to loose the money because women cannot repay the loan?
We strongly believe that when somebody that owns nothing for the first time in her life gets a chance to achieve something will do anything in her power to repay that loan. Moreover, in the few occasions it does not happen, one can imagine the reason she has for not repaying. In short, no we are not afraid that will happen.

Can't you simply give a bicycle or sewing machine?
A loan guarantees a woman's independence as it enables her to earn a living. In short, when you issue a loan, you take somebody serious. Besides that, having a loan teaches her the basic rules of the economy and business. Finally, when we issue the loan she does not fall into the hands of loan sharks who charge interest rates up to 40%! In most if not all cases micro credits are the only access to money women have. Keep in mind that two thirds of the global population does not have access to normal bank accounts, saving accounts, insurance et cetera.

Why is Micro credits for Mothers not CBF certified?
Certification costs money, up to several hundred euros yearly. One of our founding rules is that every donated euro goes directly to projects without losing money on overheads. In order to ensure our reliability and transparency all our activities, revenues and expenses are open and traceable to the public. We publish all financials, investments, and yearly reports on our website.

How do you verify allocation of donations?
Every year at least one board member or volunteer travels to Asia to evaluate running projects and meet the women involved. Our goal is to visit each microfinance program once every two years. Besides that, we keep account of the spending and repayments of each of the projects on a quarterly basis.

Who pays for these trips to Asia?
Each board member and every volunteer pays for his or her trip to Asia. Every euro donated to Micro credits for Mothers is 100% allocated to a woman in Asia.

Who pays for all the other foundation's expenses?
Our aim is for the foundation not to have any expenses. Board and volunteers do not receive any compensation for their activities or travels. The board takes care of costs like the registration at the Chamber of Commerce or usage of our domain name, which we cannot avoid. Paying these expenses is their donation so that 100% of every euro you donate benefits women in Asia.

What are micro credits?
Micro credits are a modern way to fight poverty. A micro credit is a small loan, usually less than 50 euros. Micro credits are distributed to deprived people - often the poorest of the poor - to enable them start a business and buy the necessary materials or machines or expand their current business. In development countries, owning a business most often is the only way to ensure family income. A small loan can help to double or even triple production and thus revenues. Micro credits are an effective way to give people a head start towards economic independence.

How can you tell micro financing is effective?
The man behind the idea, Muhammad Yunus is the founder of the first micro finance institution in Bangladesh. He is our main inspiration; he has taught us that it is effective. Be inspired by him and read more about the man himself, his approach, and philosophy at Wharton:

If one person alone cannot convince you, read "How 100 euros can change the entire economy":
Hoe kunnen 100 Dollar de economie veranderen? (in Dutch)
http://www.runic-europe.org/nederlands/ecosoc/microcredit/