Status Update — January 11, 2015

Microfinanzas Prisma had been facing liquidity issues and a payment plan was put in place to help Microfinanzas Prisma make payments to Kiva. The organization complied with its obligations, successfully repaying its full outstanding balance to Kiva and these funds have been distributed to lenders. Following this payment, Kiva has decided to close this partnership. We would like to thank Microfinanzas Prisma for more than 8 years of collaboration and close to 12 million USD in loans raised and wish them success in their future endeavors.

Status Update — October 14, 2014

Microfinanzas Prisma is currently behind on repaying the amount owed to Kiva lenders, but has been sending regular monthly payments to Kiva. While the organization continues to face liquidity challenges, Kiva expects to recover the full amount owed to lenders over an extended repayment period. Kiva will continue to provide updates as new information becomes available.

Partner Description:

PRISMA is a Peruvian non-governmental organization founded in April of 1986 with the purpose of strengthening the capabilities and opportunities of the nation’s poor and vulnerable by giving them the tools for sustainable social and economic development.

To accomplish this goal, we have developed seven interconnected strategies: Microfinance, Health and Nutrition, Production and Commercialization for Agricultural Development, Environment, Investigation and Medical Research, Logistics, and Strengthening of both local and regional government institutions.

In 1994, PRISMA began a new program of offering credit to individuals as a component of PASA, a program that works to secure nutrition, by which they assisted the extremely impoverished populations between 1994-1997 in the districts of Cajamarca, San Martín, Ancash, Ayacucho, Junín, Puno, Piura and Lima.

Moreover, beginning in 1997, PRISMA began using the Village Banking methodology, which extended credit capabilities into the regions of Ayacucho, Cajamarca, Junín, Huánuco, Huancavelica, Ancash, Ucayali, Puno, San Martin, Piura and Lima to meet the needs of microentrepreneurs in rural communities on the basis of shared guaranteed loans. This later resulted in a new credit option for lenders called Solidarity Groups as a graduation strategy.

As of the year 2000, PRISMA has advanced credit products for individuals, implementing Multicredit and Crediacopio for Alterative Development Areas. Through this mode of credit, small agricultural producers and traders obtain credit according to their qualifications in order to finance productive activities or to provide capital during the storage phase following harvest.

Starting in 2002, PRISMA incorporated an additional credit option designed for financing production chains with risk administration, which ultimately enables individual farmers to improve their production and productivity levels. This credit product has been particularly successfully supporting the expansion of rice, cotton and yellow corn in the district of Piura.

In 2004, PRISM combined their credit products under PRISMA Microfinance Department, providing lenders greater access to the most viable products. PRISMA continues to expand its products and services and in 2006 it began offering education directed toward the needs of clients to improve the quality of their business and their lives.

PRISMA has strategic alliances with other quality organizations including FOLADE, Freedom From Hunger, MCE, ETIMOS, Procampo S.A., ECLOF, OIKOCREDIT, CORPORACIÓN MISTI, Cooperativa Fortalecer, Banco de Crédito del Perú, Agrovet 3V SAC, Procampo S.A., USAID, Bayer, IPA, COPEME, Creditex, ICCO, INAFI – LA, PROPOLI, EDPYME Confianza, & PROMUC.

Status Update — May 15, 2014

Microfinanzas Prisma is currently experiencing institutional liquidity problems and has been unable to repay Kiva lenders in full the amount owed in repayments made by Kiva borrowers. Kiva and Prisma maintain close communication, and the organization is committed to fully repaying lenders over an extended period of time. Kiva is following up regularly and will provide additional information as it becomes available.