Paul Watson, Campus Carrier News Editor

That’s one of the most basic missions of mankind; yet, it is one of the most complicated. How does one effectively end poverty? We’ve given money to governments, but that hasn’t worked. We’ve donated food, clothing and money to individuals, but that hasn’t seemed to work either.

It’s actually very simple as to why these methods haven’t worked—it’s a matter of incentives. When you simply donate money or items to a person or government, there is no sense of ownership, no incentive to save. When it’s all gone, more foreign aid will come, and the whole thing starts over. So how can we actually help individuals (and, in the long run, countries) come out of poverty?

Though no method is perfect, one of the most effective methods out there is called microfinancing, or microloans. Many of you have heard of this method in an economics or even an English class, but if you haven’t, you’ve come to the right place.

Microfinancing is actually a very simple concept. A business owner in a developing nation gives their sales pitch and asks for small loans (often about $25). The key concept is that it is a loan, not a donation. So, if you are the loaner to these entrepreneurs, you (ideally) will get your money back.

One method that has proven to be pretty effective when it comes to ensuring the loans get repaid is group accountability. In layman’s terms, loans only go to entrepreneurs who are part of a group who are responsible for each other—if someone doesn’t pay their loan back, the rest of the group has to pay it. Therefore, if an entrepreneur is known for being financially irresponsible, they may be unable to join a group and get a loan. This has proven effective towards money being wasted by those who may not be focused on raiding themselves and their families out of poverty.

“Oh wow, that sounds like something I wouldn’t mind spending money on! How can I get in on that?” you ask. No fear! There is an easy-to-use website called Kiva.org that would love to help you help others! Kiva, which means “unity” in Swahili, was started in 2005 by Jessica Jackley as a way for her “friends in Africa” to get funded to start and/or further their small businesses. It has since boomed into the biggest microloan organization in the world. Over 530,000 loans have been made through Kiva, and these loans have almost a 99 percent return rate.

So if you have some cash lying around (what college student doesn’t, right?), consider helping an entrepreneur in the most desolate places on earth try to fight their way out of poverty. It’ll do the heart some good, trust me.