Wokai: Difference between revisions

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| logo = [[File:Wokai.gif|alt=Logo of Wokai]]

| founded_date = March 2007

| founder = Casey Wilson<br />Courtney McColgan

| ___location = [[Oakland, California]], [[United States]]<br />[[Beijing]], [[China]]

| key_people = Casey Wilson ([[chief executive officer]])

* Casey Wilson ([[Chief Executive Officer]])

| area_served = [[China]]

| focus = Economic development

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}}

'''Wokai''' was an organization that allowed people to contribute directly to [[microfinance]] institutions in China, which in turn lend the money to entrepreneurs in rural China.<ref name="SF Chronicle">[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/04/13/BACB16VUFE.DTL Tiny loans, big difference at Bay Area Web site]</ref><ref name="MSNBC">[https://web.archive.org/web/20090729214003/http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/07/28/2012055.aspx "Role-reversal: Americans provide loans to Chinese - World Blog - msnbc.com"]</ref> It was a [[501(c)|501(c)(3)]] [[non-profit organization]] based in [[Oakland, California]], with core operations in [[Beijing]], supported by individual donors, corporate sponsors, fundraising events and grants.<ref name="About">[http://www.wokai.org/f/about/index.php "About" on Wokai.org]</ref> As of May 2012, Wokai concluded operations due to funding roadblocks and the need for a new CEO.<ref name="Announcement">[{{cite web |url=http://en.wokai.org/announcement] |title=Wokai - Microfinance in China |website=en.wokai.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120502062209/http://en.wokai.org/announcement |archive-date=2012-05-02}} </ref>

==History==

Wokai was founded in March 2007 by Casey Wilson and Courtney McColgan after they met studying at Tsinghua University in Beijing.<ref name="Newsweek">[http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/chinacalling/archive/2009/04/01/facebook-for-china-s-farmers.aspx China Calling : Facebook for China's Farmers]</ref> Wokai grew to a leadership team of five, a Boardboard of Directorsdirectors, and an Investment Committee in addition to numerous volunteers, part of chapters in cities including in Beijing, Boston, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Nanjing, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Shanghai, Toronto and Washington, D.C., London, Singapore, Bristol, Dallas and Atlanta.<ref name="Team">[http://www.wokai.org/f/about/index.php?page=team "Team" on Wokai.org]</ref> Wokai also maintained a fellowship program called "Wokai Fellows", which allowed selected individuals to work directly with one of Wokai's field partners in rural China.

Wokai's blog featured updates from the field through Wokai Fellows, profiles of Wokai volunteers from around the world, personal glimpses of rural Chinese life, and commentary about current developments in rural China and the microfinance sector.

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==Activities==

Wokai allowed accredited [[microfinance]] institutions in China, called "Field Partners", to post profiles of qualified local [[entrepreneur]]s on its website.<ref name="SF Chronicle"/> Wokai had two Field Partners, the Association for Rural Development of Yilong County (ARDY), which is based in Sichuan, and [http://www.mixmarket.org/mfi/czwsda Chifeng Zhaowuda Women's Sustainable Development Association] (CZWSDA), in Chifeng, Inner Mongolia. Lenders browse and choose an entrepreneur they wish to fund.<ref name="SF Chronicle"/> Wokai aggregates loan capital from individual lenders and transfers it to the appropriate Field Partners to disburse to the entrepreneur chosen by the lender.<ref name="About"/> The average loan is around $300 and is used by low-income entrepreneurs to invest in simple business improvements such as adding additional livestock or buying new products for dry goods stores.<ref name="MSNBC" /> As the entrepreneurs repay their loans, the Field Partners remit funds back to Wokai and the lender is alerted of this repayment.<ref name="About"/><ref name="AsianWeek">[http://www.asianweek.com/2009/07/13/bay-area-microfinance-reaches-rural-chinese/ "Bay Area Microfinance Reaches Rural Chinese : AsianWeek"]</ref> Once the loan was repaid, the Wokai lenders could redistribute it to another entrepreneur, up to a total of three loan cycles.<ref name="About"/>

Donors' funds were transferred to Wokai through [[Google Checkout]].<ref name="HelpCenter">[http://www.wokai.org/f/about/index.php?page=questioncenter "Help Center" on Wokai.org]</ref> Wokai's Field Partners charged interest rates between 15% and 20%.<ref name="HelpCenter"/> Field Partners used the interest from borrower loans to cover staff salaries, transportation, and operating costs.<ref name="HelpCenter"/>

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==See also==

{{Portal|Sustainable development}}

* [[Microcredit]]

* [[Social entrepreneurship]]

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==External links==

*[http://www.wokai.org Wokai] - Official web site.

*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqhZoCp0UCg Video: Google Tech Talks: Changing China One Loan At A Time]

*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3slooRBxMc Video: Google Tech Talks: Wokai: Microfinance and the Future of China]

*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWuXSMUG0-Y Video: World Business: Facebook for Farmers]

[[Category:Microfinance organizations]]