Fonkoze and Anne Hastings

My first stop on Monday was to visit with Anne Hastings at Fonkoze. Fonkoze is a bank for the organized poor, and Anne has been the CEO for several years. She was personally recruited to do this job by the founder Fr. Joseph Philippe. For those of you who want to know more about this unique bank, check it out at www.fonkoze.org.

Fonkoze was hard hit by the earthquake. They lost five employees, 112 clients, with more than 14,300 of their clients who lost their businesses, their homes, or both. 470 members of their staff are without a home, and like most everyone else in Haiti, most everyone lost someone close to them.

Just prior to the earthquake Fonkoze, with their partner Alternative Insurance Corporation of Haiti, was about to launch a catastrophic loan product for their clients. This was created to provide help in response to the hurricanes and storms that hit Haiti in 2008. Sadly, the earthquake interrupted the implementation of this product, but Fonkoze and AIC decided they must treat the affected clients AS IF the product had been introduced. With that mandate in mind, Fonkoze successfully forged a partnership with the American Red Cross, Mercy Corps, and Opportunity International Germany. They have provided outright grants for shelter, and forgave the loans currently in force, and granted new loans to help their clients move ahead.

Since the earthquake the staff of Fonkoze has worked tirelessly to restore their services to their clients, dispensing a large amount of emergency funding and providing access to the funds they hold in trust for their clients.

Thanks, Anne Hastings, for your courageous and dedicated leadership of this outstanding program.