So, how do your loans work?

Good question. CMI began by offering an alternative lending model…..we wanted people to take on some responsibility for the money that we were raising and giving them but did not have the resources to spend the time collecting every dollar back in cash like with a traditional loan (and sometimes it takes a looooottt of work to get your money back on a loan in rural areas). So, we encouraged people we worked with to pay us back in trees - we give you a loan for your business idea and you plant one tree per $1 borrowed for up t 80% of your debt. The remaining 20% had to be paid in cash and could be returned to CMI, or forwarded to another community development project of their choosing. 

This model worked well - we gave loans to over 15 groups in 2 years and over 15,000 trees were planted. But there were still challenges…..and we wanted to reach higher. Three of the main questions we asked ourselves were:

1. How is CMI going to generate revenue over the long term to fund programs and overhead;
2. How can we help our clients to become familiar with true credit in order to link with other financial resources such as banks; and
3. How can we isolate the business goals and the environmental goals to achieve greater results?

CMI still has clients who are working to pay back their loans under the 80%-20% Tree-Cash model, but we are also expanding to take on clients who are prepared to pay back 100% of their loan with us in cash at a very small interest rate. It is our goal over the next 6-8 months to dive into the research, evaluation, resource allocation and risk assessment necessary to continue offering loans and planting trees with communities in the most sustainable manner possible. 

Do I get my money back?

No. At this point, CMI is still working with clients and our partners to figure out the best method of offering non-collateral loans while facilitating a high rate of cash repayment. One of the challenges that we face is a lack of funds for a full time office in Zambia and the US. As your contributions are transformed into loans and those loans are paid back, we do three things:

1. Recycle the money back into new loans;
2. Support tree planting activities and reforestation efforts in Zambia; and
3. Strengthen our organizational structure to continually improve implementation and monitoring. 

What is your system for monitoring?

CMI works with a network of partners in Zambia to visit each of our clients in person and conduct a regular assessment of strengths, challenges and opportunities for growth. Many of our partners meet with clients every few weeks, and CMI Director Sarah Grant is returning to Zambia from November-March 2012 to work with our current portfolio. The majority of our clients are located in rural areas of the country and over the past 3 years we have used a combination of postal letters, email, Skype, video, photo, personal visits and phone calls to keep a pulse on what is going on. 

Do you only work in Zambia?

Yes. Zambia is the country that we know best, and as a small organization you have to start somewhere. Give us a million dollars and one year, and we can think about new locations - but for now we are dedicated and tied to this one wonderful country and its people. 

Are there opportunities to intern or volunteer?

Yes! CMI needs help with fundraising, increasing our presence on the web, and research and grantwriting. For more information, please communicate your interest to: Sarah.grant@colormein.org

Where does CMI get its funding?

CMI gets the majority of its funding from public donations ranging from $25-$500. The bulk of our supporters over the past 3 years have chosen to contribute online, through Facebook, and at the occasional event that we have hosted. The Rapidan Foundation has also supported our work with a grant in 2010 exploring cash-based loans in Central Province. This year we are introducing an online store (exciting!) and we'll be working on raising the funds needed to support full time work with our loans and tree planting programs. If you've got an idea for a cool fundraising event or are interested in hosting please let us know!

Do you still have a question?

Leave a comment and we'll add it to the FAQ page and get back to you!