Friendship Bridge’s history began with its work in Vietnam providing medical education and shipping medical supplies to impoverished populations in war-ravaged areas. While medical supplies were positively impacting the lives of recipients, Friendship Bridge was looking for a more sustainable solution to poverty reduction—the solution was microcredit. In 1994, we shifted our focus from medical supplies to microcredit and began offering small loans to impoverished women. Our clients, indigenous women who were deemed ‘unbankable,’ started or expanded small businesses and began creating their own sustainable solutions to poverty.

In 1998, Friendship Bridge expanded its work to Guatemala, another war-ravaged country suffering extreme poverty and offering limited opportunities to women. Friendship Bridge shifted out of Vietnam as operations in Vietnam became unsustainable due to an unfavorable political climate. Focusing solely on Guatemala, and aided by investment from American donors, the seeds of the Microcredit Plus program we know today were planted. By 2003, almost 3,000 clients were borrowing from Friendship Bridge. By 2006 the number tripled to 9,000 clients, and today we reach nearly 35,000 women through our Microcredit Plus program.

Guatemalans face high levels of poverty, violence, natural disasters, and corruption, ultimately leading some to migrate from Guatemala. Our work is focused on supporting women-led businesses that increase our clients’ income, so they don’t need to make the difficult choice to migrate. 55% of the total population of Guatemala lives in poverty, and the situation is even more extreme for indigenous people, with a poverty rate that exceeds 79%.

Guatemala ranks 113th out of 146 countries in gender equality, making it the most gender unequal country in Latin America, according to the Global Gender Gap Index 2023. When women earn more money, we know that they invest 90% of it back into their families and communities, and that helps make their communities stronger. Many of our clients’ increased income means that their children can stay in school longer, rather than dropping out to work and help support the family, which can create generational change.