Myanmar Earthquake Recovery Lending Project

from Myanmar Earthquake Recovery Lending

by Christine Goh & Arthur Hu

Provide affordable capital and other financial services to empower poor earthquake-afffected households to restore and sustain their livelihoods, reducing dependency on external aid.

On 28 March 2025, two powerful earthquakes struck Central Myanmar, causing significant destruction, resulting in over 3,700 deaths and over 281,000 individuals displaced. Myanmar was already facing overlapping economic, hunger, and humanitarian crises prior to the earthquakes due to the military coup, ongoing civil-war, Covid-19 pandemic, and other significant natural disaster events. These challenges have been greatly exacerbated by the 2025 earthquakes. One year on, it remains critical to help the most-affected survivors rebuild their lives.

HOW LOANS ACCELERATE RECOVERY

VisionFund is the microfinance arm of World Vision International. When disaster strikes, families often lose everything. Traditional humanitarian aid from agencies such as World Vision and Red Cross help them survive. But to thrive again, capital is needed. 

According to the Myanmar Finscope study, 70% of the adult population is financially excluded or only informally served and only 5% of adults have a bank account. 

VisionFund strategically plugs livelihood gaps in long-term community resilience and recovery efforts by providing rapid, affordable loans to families and small businesses after crisis hits. Recovery loans provide hope and dignity to clients, empowering communities to provide for their families as agents of their own recovery, not victims.

 

"The loan helped us repair our house and restart our pig farming.
Step by step, we were able to stand again." Daw Khine Zar, Farmer

 

PROJECT GOAL

To enable earthquake affected households to restore and sustain their livelihoods by providing affordable, pro-poor financial services after disasters.

The Global Partnership Goal by March 2027:

• 33,250 people, including 9,350 children impacted
• 10,390 additional recovery loans delivered
• Expand outreach to newly affected households, to sustain local market recovery

 

JOIN US TO SUPPORT THE RECOVERY OF THE MOST VULNERABLE CHILDREN AND FAMILIES IMPACTED BY EARTHQUAKES IN MYANMAR!

 

 

 

How Does World Vision Carry Out Microfinance?

• Mission Driven, not Profit Maximisation
  • Children are at the heart of our mission and work
  • Unique in the breadth and depth of our focus on serving the most vulnerable
  • Majority of clients are women and in rural areas where the need is the greatest (expensive to service and hence ignored by most microfinance providers)
  • Regular check-ins and readjusted repayment plan as client needs evolve, especially in Myanmar’s security context

 

• Sustainable Practices, Long-Term Empowerment
  • Tailored financial solutions help clients build sustainable livelihoods and increase incomes, with better child well-being outcomes
  • Behaviour and mindset-change framework addresses external dependency mindsets and aims to transition towards individual empowerment
  • Compulsory savings accounts for all clients (not less than 14% interest per year)
  • 28% per year loan interest rate, in line with regulations on Microfinance Institutions
  • Regular security assessment in Myanmar, prioritising clients with strong credit history and loans in resilient sector

 

 

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PROJECT

To Give in SGD:

• Scan the PayNow QR Code above & input "[Name] [Phone Number] DC1868" in the comments section
• OR Click the green "Donate Now" button on the right to use Paypal, Debit Card, or Credit Card
  
  • Please note that credit card payments to charitable organizations do not earn points or count as minimum spend for almost all credit cards and are subject to transaction charges of [2%] deducted by the bank and card company.

 

To Give in USD:

• For US$ donations, you can make a free local transfer from your DBS US$ multi-currency Singapore account to World Vision International’s DBS US$ multi-currency account 072-160663-1
  • Input "[Name] [Phone Number] DC1868" in the comments section

 

**World Vision will send you an official receipt via Whatsapp to the phone number you provide, addressed to the name you provide. It is essential to include DC1868 so that the donation may be channelled to the correct project.