Prepared to practice social entrepreneurship in Jamaica

I am so thankful to been a part of this class!  I learned so much.  Here are some of my thoughts:

I can design a program that makes solar power accessible to more Jamaicans by integrating elements from the Annapurna Pariwar micro-finance project.  I would hold town hall meetings to educate people about how investing in solar power saves money on electricity in the long run.  I would also encourage people to form cooperatives with several other households in the community.  Instead of loaning out money, I could loan out solar panels.  Because solar panels are quite expensive, only one household would receive a solar panel each year.  The household that receives this solar panel would, instead of paying an electricity bill, pay our agency each month the amount that would have previously gone to the electric company.  Research suggests that when collateral is offered in exchange of a loan individuals are more likely to default, so the honor system would be used instead.  If the family defaults, other members from the cooperative would be responsible for picking up the bill for that month.  Thus, like Annapurna Pariwar, peer pressure would be used to make sure that clients follow through with obligations.  After the first year, a solar panel would be loaned to a second family.  Each family would continue to pay our agency each month the amount that they would have otherwise paid the electric company.  When the cost of the solar panel has been met by these payments, the family would own the solar panel.  They would continue to pay monthly payments to our agency for one year, so that the agency collects 10% interest on the loan which would go to maintaining the non-profit program.  After paying for the solar panel plus 10% interest, each household would no longer be responsible for making monthly payments.  However, they would still be responsible for paying bills in the event that other members of the cooperative default.  When all members of the cooperative own a solar panel, and have paid 10% interest to ensure continuance of the program, the cooperative would be dissolved.
Additionally, it would be easy to implement a micro finance program that directly imitates Annapurna Pariwar's loan system.  I could start by holding town meeting to inform people of the program.  People who want to join could form cooperatives with 5 friends or family members who they have long-time relationships with and a high level of trust.  The first year, the agency would loan 2,000 Jamaican dollars (a nominal amount) to each member of the group.  Our agency would work with the cooperative throughout the year to help the clients invest the money well.  The founder of Annapurna Pariwar considers education to be an essential component of the money lending process.  She not only lends money but also teaches people how to invest this money wisely.  When the year is over, clients would pay back the loan plus 10%.  The 10% would go to maintaining the nonprofit agency.  If individuals want to borrow more money in the future, they would be eligible for a loan in a larger amount because of the good credit history.  I can see how few people would default on these loans because the honor system is used instead of collateral, peer pressure is effective because clients do not want their loved ones to be responsible for debt that they have accrued and because clients should see that the relationship with the agency is more valuable than the amount of one loan.  In other words, a client who borrows 2,000 Jamaican dollars today can choose to walk away with that money or continue to build a relationship with the agency so that in several years, they qualify to borrow 70,000 Jamaican dollars, a substantial amount that can greatly impact the quality of one's life.
I can also alter the BAIF eco-tourism project in order to design an endogenous tourism package to improve livelihoods within the Maroon community in Jamaica.  Runaway slaves escaped to the mountains of Jamaica and formed the Maroon culture which to this day has been largely separated from greater Jamaican society.  I would love to spend time in the Maroon community, assess social issues, and design an endogenous tourism package that honors and preserves Maroon culture while bringing in a revenue to improve the livelihoods of community members.


I love you India!