Kiva defines impact both in the scale of our global reach and the depth of change in a person’s life. From the billions of dollars in loans we’ve distributed, to the scaled reach of our Lending Partners, to the increased monthly income for a widowed shop owner in Kenya — dive into how Kiva creates positive impact in the world.
Changing lives, one loan at a time.
Kiva’s 2023 Annual Impact
$176M closer to a financially inclusive world
With every loan in 2023, you made a real impact in communities that lack access to financial services.
$176M
Total lent
190,911
Loans funded
432.4K
People reached
62
Countries
See the progress the Kiva community made in 2023.
Read Kiva’s 2023 Impact Report
Kiva’s all-time impact
$2 billion
in loans funded
5 million
people reached
2.3 million
loans funded
1 person
reached every 90 seconds
Africa
People reached: 2 million Loans funded: $517 million
Asia
People reached: 1.2 million Loans funded: $488 million
Central America
People reached: 326,000 Loans funded: $184 million
Eastern Europe
People reached: 40,000 Loans funded: $59 million
Middle East
People reached: 92,000 Loans funded: $119 million
North America
People Reached: 139,000 Loans funded: $202 million
Oceania
People Reached: 52,000 Loans funded: $43 million
South America
People Reached: 960,000 Loans funded: $393 million
Top 10 loan sectors
Kiva brings financial access to traditionally excluded communities.
From racial discrimination and gender biases to armed conflict and climate change, there are many reasons why people are financially excluded. Underserved communities need financial access in order to create sustainable economic opportunity, yet they are denied fair and equitable access to resources. Kiva strives to bridge this gap and open the door to opportunity for every person around the world.
To have the greatest impact, Kiva focuses on four key impact areas where we see the most need for financial equity — and where Kiva can do the most good.
Creating a more equitable future for women.
With funding from millions of Kiva lenders, we’re helping women build the lives they want, giving them access to resources to break through cultural and economic barriers, to start their own businesses, pay for education, and invest in themselves.
More on Kiva + gender equity"I felt happy because I was finally able to accomplish my dream, to have a business selling Colombian empanadas. I was able to make this a reality."
— Laura
3.82 million
women reached
$1.5 billion
in loans funded
4/5
Kiva loans go to women
Kiva loans create opportunity for women in myriad industries and sectors.
Helping displaced people rebuild.
For refugees and IDPs that are rebuilding their lives, as well as people at risk of forced migration from their homes, Kiva provides fair access to capital to create economic opportunity and financial stability for themselves and their families.
More on Kiva + refugees and IDPs“I stood on my own feet again.”
- Malik
As a college student, business owner, and refugee, Malik runs a neighborhood coffee shop and dreams of becoming a journalist after earning his degree. After Covid-19 closed his business and put his studies on hold, Malik was able to reopen his shop and return to finish his education, with help from a Kiva loan.
38,000
refugees and displaced people reached
$51.3 million
LOANS FUNDED
96%
repayment rate, same as non-refugee borrowers
Kiva loans support displaced people all over the world.
Supporting systemically marginalized U.S. entrepreneurs.
We’re expanding financial access for U.S. business owners that have been most excluded historically, including the LGBTQ+ community, immigrants, women and non-binary people, Black and African Americans, the LatinX community, Indigenous people, and People of Color.
More on Kiva + U.S. entrepreneurs“The Kiva loan impacted my business financially, but it impacted me as a person as well. I had a lot of growth, which is priceless.”
- Danielle
10,380
women reached
$64 million
loans funded
70%
of Kiva U.S. loans supported BIPOC entrepreneurs
Building resilience for people affected by climate change.
Because social and financial inequity make the impacts of climate change worse for the millions of people living in poverty conditions, Kiva helps people invest in climate-smart solutions for their families and local communities.
More on Kiva + climate impactThach’s family had always used a solid-fuel stove, but it was making the air inside their home dangerous to breathe. With a Kiva loan, Thach bought a clean cookstove that not only reduces air pollution, it gives her family free solar power for charging their devices.
616,000
people reached
$41 million
clean energy loans funded
$20 million
climate-smart agricultural loans funded
Measuring our impact
Our impact is more than just our global reach — more importantly, it’s about real-world outcomes for people. That’s why we work with Lending Partners to set outcomes and targets for impact populations, use monitoring and evaluations to measure progress, learn what works best, and ensure borrowers' lives are changing for the better.
Estimation
We first estimate if a partner can have a meaningful impact for their customers. This includes ensuring they serve financially excluded populations, protect clients from over-indebtedness, and offer products that help clients succeed long-term.
Monitoring
Partners must complete surveys on a regular basis to monitor their impact and flag opportunities for growth and improvement. We also make onsite and virtual visits to conduct risk and impact audits.
Validation
Through client-level surveys, we assess how borrowers are being positively impacted by their loan, as well as identify ways our partners’ services can be improved to provide a stronger social impact.
Most importantly, we look at borrowers’ success.
The 60 Decibels Microfinance Index (2022) assessed outcomes for 5,200 lenders from 26 of Kiva’s Lending Partners. After receiving their loan:
90%
of borrowers surveyed said their quality of life had improved.
83%
said their business income had increased.
78%
said they were better able to manage their finances.
Investing in impactful partnerships
Strategic Partners
Working with vetted partners amplifies the impact we can make in people’s lives. Our corporate and philanthropic partners share our mission, and their contributions, expertise, and reach with global audiences helps us scale our impact even more. There are various ways for organizations to accelerate their organization’s impact with Kiva, such as grants, loan matching, and employee and customer engagement programs.
More about Kiva + partnerships515
global partners
715,000
employees and customers engaged
$108M
donations to Kiva
$167 million
loans disbursed to borrowers
3.6 million
borrowers funded
Lending Partners
Our Lending Partners are an extensive network of organizations in more than 96 countries on 5 continents. Most Lending Partners are microfinance institutions, but they are also NGOs, social enterprises, and nonprofits. These organizations are responsible for screening borrowers, disbursing loans, collecting repayments, and otherwise administering Kiva loans.
483
Lending Partners
111
Social Enterprise Partners
38
Kiva U.S. Hubs
Kiva helps Lending Partners improve their services to better support their communities.
Just as important as reaching more borrowers is ensuring that the organizations we work with can truly benefit clients’ lives. We put our years of industry experience to work, building up our Lending Partners so they can build up communities, with outcomes like:
Increased organizational stability and customer satisfaction
Strengthened gender-forward and climate-smart practices
Scaling of evidence-based products and services
Working with trusted Lending Partners leads to tangible benefits for borrowers.
Borrowers who received a loan from One Acre Fund reported an average 40% increase in their farming income.
Almost half of borrowers with clean water and sanitation loans from iDE reported a significant reduction in stomach illnesses.
Impact that matters: Positive outcomes for borrowers
The simplest way to know Kiva’s impact is to ask the people benefitting from Kiva loans. Our largest Lending Partner NWTF is a non-government organization committed to providing sustainable financial and developmental services to women in low-income communities of Central Philippines. As part of our ongoing monitoring and validation, 60 Decibels, an independent social impact measurement company, conducted interviews with NWTF’s clients to assess impact.
Access
47%
of borrowers surveyed said they had no access to financing prior to their Kiva loan.
Business impact
94%
saw increases in business income.
Household impact
94%
said their quality of life improved.
Client protection
97%
said repayments were not a burden.
Resilience
89%
had increased savings.
Agency
95%
had increased business confidence.
“We were able to buy more livestock and now we can sell more — it adds to our income. And some of the money we used to pay my child’s school fees, so it lessens our worries.”
— NWTF borrower
Your support is helping us build a more financially inclusive future.
Thanks to this incredible community of lenders and partners, Kiva has been able to make a huge difference already — but there’s more work to be done. Your support helps us continue creating lasting change for a world where every single person has the financial access they need to thrive.
Donate to KivaLearn more about Kiva’s impact
Access to finance is critical to help women entrepreneurs around the world improve their earnings
