HOPE International’s best ideas often come straight from the men and women we serve around the world.
Since the beginning of our Dreaming Beyond Our Boundaries initiative in 2021, we’ve surveyed over 17,000 people we serve. When they told us they wanted more flexibility in their repayment schedules, more support in housing, or to access money from their phones, we listened—and found more innovative ways to respond than ever before. As we’ve prioritized innovative problem solving, it has become the new normal at HOPE.
Here are three program innovations that have made a difference for the entrepreneurs and families we serve:
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At your doorstep: mobile money solutions for entrepreneurs
As we listened to entrepreneurs we serve in Burundi, we learned that traveling into branch offices to withdraw cash was costly and dangerous. We began to ask: How could we help those we serve access funds quickly and conveniently?
In 2023, we rolled out a mobile money solution at Turame Community Finance, our microfinance institution in Burundi. Turame E-wanyu (“Turame at your doorstep”) makes banking easier for those we serve and safer for our loan officers. Because of recent scams at other banks, some were initially nervous to try mobile money. Aline Nizigiyimana (pictured left) was the first to say, “My trust group will pilot this.”
“She became a change agent for this process,” shared Gideon Maniragaba, Turame’s managing director at the time.
2. Building a dream: housing solutions for families
When we ask the families we serve about their dreams, housing almost always rises to the top.
In 2024, we disbursed over $2.6M in housing loans. Across HOPE microfinance institutions, we’re innovating loans uniquely designed to help people access more secure housing.
In Ukraine, amid the challenges posed by Russia’s invasion, we’ve disbursed $300,000 in 89 housing loans since 2022. In the past, HOPE Ukraine has offered a home renovation loan, but loan sizes were designed more for small projects. We look forward to seeing many more families equipped to purchase or build a home!
Pictured left: Vladimir Mineev, farmer served by HOPE Ukraine
3. Agriculture as a calling: equipping farmers
“What can I do? I’m just a farmer.” This mindset—that farming is a limitation, not a calling—is pervasive among the three in four people in poverty who work in agriculture (World Bank). And over 50% of the population in countries where we operate rely on farming as a primary source of income.
Over the last five years, our savings group team has deployed 16 regenerative agricultural initiatives across seven countries, equipping over 30,000 farmers to date. God has done incredible things!
Sowers of HOPE is our farmer-focused discipleship program that combines agricultural training with savings groups. Members of the Abishyizehamwe (“those who have come together”) group in Rwanda have been trained to disciple and equip other farmers in their community.
Emmanuel (pictured above, sitting on the right), a member of Abishyizehamwe, shares, “From this group, I learned that caring for my livestock is part of the good work that the Lord created for us to do. … There are things my wife and I no longer worry about, like paying school fees and buying eggs and vegetables for our children.”
And we’re not done yet! Learn more about how we’re innovating to equip even more families with tools to tackle the challenges of poverty—and join us in Dreaming Beyond!
Pictured above: members of Abishyizehamwe (“those who have come together”) savings group outside their church in Rwanda.
