80% of Americans live with the threat of poverty, joblessness, or a dependence on welfare assistance. In Kenya, 50% of the population lives under the poverty line (Associated Press).  

With the state of the globe as grim as statistics suggest, why should people outside of Africa invest in microfinance loans for African nations?
 

While donors may harbor the best intentions in giving monies toward restoring broken states, foreign aid has been reduced from meaningful investment into the future fiscal independence of a nation, to blind handouts given away to wayward political factions that can apportion at their discretion.

Microfinance is a viable alternative to the existing method of foreign aid because funds bypass the web of governmental bureaucracy and is placed into the hands of those who need it most: the average person.

A small sum given directly to an individual equipped with the proper training dramatically raises the odds of the investment making a difference.  Furthermore, small loans given to a typical resident allow the funds to be closely monitored. Whereas large sums of monies given to unstable governments frequently disappear in the web of protocol and corruption, microfinance loans are closely monitored to ensure that funds are utilized to maximize sustainability and repay the debt.

Microfinance loans offer an opportunity to equip individuals with money management skills that are applicable to his or her situation. As the investment begins expanding, more individuals within the community will learn responsible money management skills.  In time, the microfinance loan will enable children to obtain an education, progress, and become the next leaders of their nations.

Although self-sufficiency for the majority of African nations remains a distant dream, providing a microfinance loan to an individual is an investment toward the sustainability of a nation.  In time, African states can begin to rely on each other for aid, thus phasing out the need for monetary intervention from other nations

Microfinance loans provide a viable alternative in which the average person who resides outside Africa can directly impact the standard of living of a person in Africa. While globally people alike are struggling to make ends meet, it is evident that long-term investments into solutions like microfinance provide a great alternative to traditional aid.