IMF Head Visits Chiswick Charity Project In Africa

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Christine Lagarde sees work of Microloan Foundation in Malawi

The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde, has visited the Malawi base of Chiswick charity, the Microloan Foundation.

She met with women who are supported by the charity, including Joliet Saidi (pictured below) who was given a loan from the Foundation to start a grocery store business. Joliet said the business was helping her fulfil her dream of providing an education for her children and allowing them to attend school.

When Christine Legarde visited Joliet she purchased two re-packed packets of sugar and offered her encouragement to Joliet to pursue her dream for her family.

The Microloan Foundation was set up by Chiswick businessman Peter Ryan whose background was starting up businesses for other companies in Europe and Africa. During a trip to Malawi in 1997, he was profoundly influenced by the disparity between rich and poor and set up the charity to provide microfinance services for sub-Saharan Africa.

The charity provides small loans to groups of women to enable them to become self-sufficient and help them launch their own small businesses, such as setting up food stalls, or buying a piece of equipment such as a sewing machine or animals such as goats for breeding.

January 15, 2013