Two years ago many of you supported our 2012 Christmas appeal, which has made a huge difference to communities living in poverty.  The appeal was match funded by the UK government.  As a result all donations were doubled, meaning that many of you helped us raise a staggering total of £4 million! This enabled us to set ambitious targets for a two year expansion project across Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda and Uganda.

I want to share with you what has been achieved across Africa and how lives have been transformed:

• Over 158,000 jobs have been created and/or sustained:  Through provision of loans and savings, entrepreneurs have been able to grow their businesses and create more employment opportunities for their local community.
  
  
• Thousands of people have been trained in budgeting, borrowing and saving, enabling them to manage their money more efficiently and save for a rainy day.  This training was delivered through radio, TV and drama campaigns aswell as in group meetings.
  
  
• School loans have improved school facilities and the children's education.
  
  
• Mobile phone banking has been developed and are operating in Rwanda, Malawi and Uganda.   This enables us to serve many more people and at a much lover cost to them.  They can do their business from the palm of their hand.  

We couldn’t have done this without your support. Thank you.

(Edward Fox is Opportunity International UK's Chief Executive)