Kiva conducts regular, ongoing monitoring of all Lending Partners, but only posts status updates here in response to relevant, major changes at the partner.

March 20, 2023

The ongoing political and economic crisis in Lebanon continues to impact the country greatly. The unprecedented situation, which the World Bank has called one of the most severe economic and financial crises the world has seen since 1850, has led to significant challenges in Ibdaa’s ability to operate. With around 80% of the population now living below the poverty line according to the UN, Kiva no longer expects all of Ibdaa’s borrowers to be able to repay what they owe to Kiva lenders. When Ibdaa is able to collect from their borrowers, capital controls remain in place preventing US dollars from being sent out of the country, limiting Ibdaa’s ability to send repayments to Kiva lenders.

Kiva remains in close contact with the organization and we are working together to determine how to receive funds owed to Kiva lenders that Ibdaa has been able to collect from their borrowers. We are hopeful that we will begin receiving some repayments soon and will post more information when it becomes available. We thank lenders for their understanding during these difficult times in Lebanon.

January 2021 Update:

To reflect the current crisis in Lebanon, Kiva has re-assessed the level of risk associated with loans from each of our Lending Partners in the country. Unfortunately, the political and economic situation in Lebanon has not improved, and Covid-19 and the aftermath of the Beirut explosion in August continue to impact an already difficult situation. We remain in close contact with Ibdaa and while we are confident they are managing the situation as best they can, there are numerous factors outside of their control. A key part of our risk rating is based on macro-level risks of a country, and to reflect the current situation in Lebanon and the inability to transfer US dollars out of the country, our new assessment has resulted in a risk rating of 1.5 stars for Ibdaa.

August 2020 Update:

Kiva continues to be saddened by the August explosion in Beirut. For an update on how we, and our partners, are responding, please see our blog post here.

July 2020 - COVID-19 Update:

This message is a follow-up from our February 14 status update below. Prior to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic, Lebanon was already facing a political and economic crisis, which began last year. Both of these events have contributed to the challenging situation in Lebanon currently. Like many other countries, Lebanon imposed a nation-wide shutdown, as well as a temporary moratorium on loan payments which not only affects microfinance, but the economy as a whole. As a result, Ibdaa has experienced difficulty collecting loan repayments due to the aforementioned restrictions or fallout effects of the virus.

Beyond COVID-19, capital controls (put in place by banks at the start of the economic crisis in November) continue, preventing all outgoing transfers of US dollars. This means that our partners remain unable to remit repayments owed to Kiva lenders. Kiva continues to be in close contact with Ibdaa and we are confident they are managing the challenging situation as best they can. We thank lenders for their understanding of the current state of Lebanon during this time. We will post additional updates as we have them.

Status update — February 14, 2020

The recent unrest in Lebanon, beginning with protests and leading to the fall of the government, has greatly impacted the operations of our partners in the country. The economic implications have been significant, including capital controls put in place by banks which prevent all outgoing transfers of US dollars. As a result, our partners are currently unable to remit repayments owed to Kiva lenders. Kiva is in close contact with Ibdaa and we are confident they are managing the situation as best they can, but until the situation improves Ibdaa will not be posting loans to Kiva. We thank lenders for their patience during these challenging times in Lebanon.

Partner Description:

Ibdaa Microfinance is an initiative of the Arab Gulf Fund (AGFUND) aimed at reducing poverty and unemployment in Lebanon. Ibdaa targets marginalized communities, women, entrepreneurs and youth. 

Among the populations Idbaa targets are displaced Syrian and Palestinian refugees. Lebanon has been experiencing an influx of Syrian refugees who are escaping the violent conflict in neighboring Syria. The refugees add to Lebanon’s economic instability as they struggle to obtain jobs. Palestinian refugees are also a highly marginalized part of the Lebanese economy. They are forced to live in refugee camps and face many job restrictions. Ibdaa’s loans will serve these vulnerable refugee communities and help stabilize Lebanon’s economy.

Unique Lending Approach:

Kiva funding is used primarily for Ibdaa’s borrowers who are Syrian refugees, Palestinian refugees and youth with startup businesses. The loans are given to Syrian and Palestinian refugees who are working or have established businesses, and women borrowers are prioritized.

The loans that Ibdaa offers to Syrian refugees are group loans (three per group), while those offered to the Palestinian refugees and youth startups are individual loans. The youth startup loans are particularly unique in that they will also include business development services, on-the-job coaching and mentoring to help young entrepreneurs successfully launch their businesses.