Even in Tough Economic Times, Kiva.org Enables Individuals to Make a Difference This Holiday Season

$25 Kiva Gift Certificates Are Affordable, Impactful and Reusable

SAN FRANCISCO, CA–(EMWNews – July 16, 2008) – Gift givers can still afford a “gift that

keeps on giving” this holiday season, without blowing the budget when times

are tight.

While rising gas prices and a credit crisis will force many people to spend

carefully this holiday season, Kiva Gift Certificates prove that you can

still achieve the “double bottom line” in your gift inventory this year —

giving a unique and fun gift that helps those in need, and providing the

recipient with the opportunity to “recycle” his/her loan.

Kiva Gift Certificates enable your gift recipient to make a loan to a

developing world entrepreneur, to work their way out of poverty. When the

loan is repaid, the funds can be recycled and loaned to another

entrepreneur, or withdrawn from the system to be spent any way they like.

What makes this gift unique?

Kiva.org is the only microfinance organization in the Americas that allows

participants to choose the individual person to whom they would like to

make a loan. Each loan request includes a photo of the entrepreneur, a

description of their business and the loan terms.

This personal lending model affects participants in ways which reach

farther than a simple loan transaction. In a recent survey of more than

3,300 Kiva lenders:

--  69.6% of respondents are more enthusiastic about philanthropy

--  42.2% of respondents feel, for the first time, that they are making a

    real difference in the world

--  37.7% of respondents indicate that being a Kiva lender has changed the

    way they think about people outside of their home country

--  18.6% of respondents indicate that being a Kiva lender has changed the

    way they perceive the poor in their community

    

Lending to the poor is affordable even now

Kiva.org made a conscious decision to keep the minimum loan contribution

low, so that almost anyone can be a banker to the poor.

Recent data confirms that the $25 minimum is affordable, even during tough

economic times. Despite recent economic downturns, Kiva.org has

experienced continued growth, contrary to the experience of many non-profit

organizations:

--  In the second half of 2007, $1 million  was loaned through Kiva.org

    every 19 days.   Currently, despite the economic downturn, $1 million  is

    loaned through Kiva.org every 10.3 days.

--  Over the past year Kiva.org has grown, on average, 8% each month in

    loan volume.

--  In the past year Kiva.org's monthly loan volume has increased by 92%.

    

How it works

More information can be found on Kiva’s Online Press Center:

www.kiva.org/about/giftcertificates

--  Gift certificates are easily purchased on www.kiva.org in multiples of

    $25.

--  Gift recipients redeem their gift online and then choose an

    entrepreneur they would like to lend the gift to.

--  Throughout the course of the loan (typically 12 months) lenders

    receive email updates on repayments made and the progress of the business.

--  When the loan is repaid, the funds are returned to the gift recipient,

    who can lend to another entrepreneur, or withdraw their funds from the

    system.

    

About Kiva.org

Kiva.org (www.kiva.org) is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending

website, empowering individuals to lend directly to an entrepreneur in the

developing world. Founded in 2005, Kiva.org’s mission is to connect

people, through lending, to alleviate poverty. Kiva.org currently connects

lenders in more than 100 countries with entrepreneurs in 43 developing

countries, through 90 microfinance partners. Kiva.org is headquartered in

San Francisco.