In the News

The numbers of those in deep poverty can seem to be overwhelming and often it seems like the problem is too big to be addressed. However, I have a friend, Craig Cole, who is the executive director of "Five Talents" based in Virginia. Five Talents’ mission is to fight poverty, create jobs and transform lives by empowering the poor in developing countries using innovative savings and microcredit programs, business training and spiritual development.

Irene is one of the top students in her 4th grade class, and her mother is very proud of her achievements.

Without the help of the Thika Community Development Trust, Irene may not have been able to attend – or have had such success – in school. Jane, Irene’s mom, has been part of the Trust in Kenya since 2004. She’s invested her loans from the Trust in her vegetable garden and rabbit business. She has used the profits to pay for her children’s school fees and clothing and to buy nutritious food.

Before Five Talents helped, Rosita and her family suffered from severe malnutrition. Six-year-old Rosita Elizabeth and her family had moved from a small Peruvian city in the Amazon jungle. And her parents searched in vain for odd jobs – just to survive in Lima.

Rosita’s mother (Maria) tells the story of the family going to bed many nights with empty stomachs. “We would get meals at a community food kitchen but suffered from food poisoning several times,” Maria said.

VIENNA, Va., (christiansunite.com) -- Thanks to the income from her small food business, Ahok, who is a single mother living in Lietnhom, Sudan, is now able to send all five of her children to school. Akot, her 10-year-old son, has begun first grade - one step toward his dream of becoming a doctor.

Thanks to the income his mother now earns from her small food business, 10-year-old Akot has begun first grade, the first step toward his dream of becoming a doctor. Ahok, Akot’s mother, used small loans to begin selling prepared food items, like vegetable dishes and sandwiches, in Lietnhom, Sudan. With the income from her business, this single mother has been able to send all five of her children to school.

VIENNA, Va. -- Thanks to the income from her small food business, Ahok, who is a single mother living in Lietnhom, Sudan, is now able to send all five of her children to school. Akot, her 10-year-old son, has begun first grade – one step toward his dream of becoming a doctor.

"I love my mother," Akot said. "She gives me milk and biscuits every day. I also love my school uniform; I look smart in school.

Twelve-year-old Atupenda hopes to become a teacher one day. This fifth grader attends school in Kilolo, Tanzania. Her favorite subject is English, and she plays netball after school with her friends.

Her mother, Atuitie, recently paid back her first loan of $75 to the Mama Bahati Foundation, a Five Talents microfinance partner based in Iringa, Tanzania. She used the loan to increase the inventory of her small vegetable store, which resulted in new customers and increased sales. The additional income for the family has given Atupenda a new sense of self-confidence.

Across the world, Five Talents International is making a difference in the lives of those who live in poverty.

Take Joy, for instance. When her husband died some years ago, Joy received a loan of $150 to start a brick-making business. In four months, Joy had sold enough bricks to repay that initial $150. She has since expanded her business to the point where she employs 13 people who support their families on the income she provides.

Five-year-old Esther is thankful for milk. Since her mother, Phiong, joined GERHATI in Jakarta, Indonesia, and expanded her cake business, her family of six can now afford to buy nutritious food and to pay for Esther’s school fees – she’s in kindergarten this year!

Phiong owed a loan shark $820. Without the means to pay it back, she became desperate and contemplated committing suicide.

Another gift opportunity is provided by Five Talents International, which has offered funding, consulting and training in some of the world's poorest countries since 1999. Five Talents' mission is to fight poverty, create jobs and transform lives through innovative savings and microcredit programs.

The organization, based in Vienna, Virginia, has financed thousands of $50 to $300 loans in Central and South America, Africa and Asia, each loan financing a business that employs at least five people. Five Talents also offers on-site business training through "Business as Mission" trips and Christian Economic Development Institutes.

"With each of our programs, we partner with a local church," said Kelli Ross, spokesperson for Five Talents, explaining that, in addition to building business skills, another goal is to enhance spiritual development.