“Microcredit is about giving hope. When you’re talking about making loans to women whose income is less than $1 a day, you can easily make the leap to see what a microloan can make possible. The women I’ve met in Uganda and Guatemala are so resourceful, and it’s just amazing to see how, with their courage and diligence, they create small businesses with such tiny amounts of money. These women work so hard, and they manage to pay off their loans, and the first thing they do is educate and feed their kids. It’s amazing that the world is not investing more in this resource.”

Natalie Portman
Actress
FINCA International Ambassador of Hope
Spokesperson for the International Year of Microcredit 2005