Why Kiva? Why Now?

“We came to this country with two suitcases.” This reminder from my mother imparts to me all that is possible in America with no more than an education and unabashed ambition. Having been born in a developing nation, I have grown up conscious of the gap between the resources and opportunities available to me and those available to less fortunate youth. I have found in my own experience that even in the most devastating poverty, the human spirit can shine triumphantly. There is an ingenuity, a resourcefulness that commandeers the survival strategies of those who are forced to confront poverty. I am driven by a desire to learn from the poor in order to create viable programmatic and policy approaches to empowering disadvantaged populations.

As the client relations director of The Campus Kitchens Project at UF, I serve as both an advocate and liaison for the low-income housing communities and after-school care programs to which we deliver meals. Our holistic approach combines sustainable sources of food donations, with education and empowerment programs designed to provide concrete solutions to hunger in the United States. The challenges and frustrations I have faced in this role have served as invaluable lessons; experiences which will enhance my ability to handle obstacles I might face as a fellow.

Last summer, I volunteered on a service trip to Managua and Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua with a UF student organization called Recurso. I recognized and appreciated a vital aspect of successful development initiatives when our group was asked to build a schoolhouse to replace the packed mud platform and USAID tent that some local children called their school. It was when I saw an army of 40 children in school uniforms carrying bags of gravel, that I understood the importance and power of a local sense of ownership of the schoolhouse project. My time as a volunteer with Recurso led me to become its current president.

My motivation to be a Kiva fellow also stems from my desire to pursue my “self-education,” and I believe this fellowship will provide me with the ideal environment to learn and challenge myself. Many of my interests lie at the intersection of business and development. I am intrigued and inspired by the concept of “patient capitalism” termed by Jacquelyn Novogratz of Acumen Fund. I believe that although aid has a role, long-term growth and progress, specifically in Africa, can only be achieved through investing in local business and encouraging entrepreneurs, in addition to responsible (and patient) foreign investment.

As a soon-to-be college graduate, it is thrilling to have discovered that which inspires such passion within me. The Kiva Fellowship will allow me to employ my business knowledge, research and data analysis skills, and my international and local NGO experience in an exciting and challenging role. It is my desire to be a part of and contribute to the Kiva process by working with a field partner as a fellow.

[Via http://ndotoyakidege.wordpress.com]

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