PAIDEK is a microfinance institution operating in the Sud-Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and is one of only a few reputable financial services providers in the region. With Kiva’s help, PAIDEK will provide loans to farmers to the following underserved communities.

Idjwi is an extremely impoverished island in Lake Kivu. There are few roads and no public electricity or sanitation available to the estimated 200,000 residents living on the island. Most of Idjwi’s residents survive by subsistence farming. 

Uvira city has seen some of the worst of the region's conflict due to its location in a mineral-rich area along Lake Tanganyika. Poverty, lack of access to basic services, ongoing ethnic tensions and the presence of armed groups continue to threaten Uvira residents.

PAIDEK aims to improve the lives of marginalized groups living in Sud-Kivu by providing them with financial services at low rates. The organization lends to a variety of businesses including small scale traders, artisanal activities, livestock and agriculture. About half of PAIDEK’S clients are women.