Dr. Laurent Mbanda has joined the Opportunity International Global Board of Directors to help guide the organization and enable it to achieve its goal of empowering clients to create 20 million jobs by 2020.
Apart from Mbanda also Warren Staley, Stephen Harris joined the organization.
Dr. Mbanda is Bishop of Shyira Diocese in the Anglican Church Rwanda, which oversees nearly 329 local congregations.
He was born in Rwanda and spent his childhood in Burundi. Dr. Mbanda joined Compassion International in 1993, where he held several different positions in the ministry, including Vice President of the Africa Region and Vice President of Program Development.
Dr. Mbanda is also Vice Chairman of the Global Board of Directors for Compassion International and serves as Board Chair for Food for the Hungry. Previously, he served on the Board of International Justice Mission and Chaired the Board of Kigali Institute of Education in Rwanda.
Dr. Mbanda is a graduate of Kenya Highlands Bible College and has completed coursework for a Master of Arts in Missiology from Fuller Seminary’s School of World Missions. He also earned a Master of Arts in Christian Education from Denver Seminary and a Ph.D. from Trinity International University in Deerfield, Ill. He and his wife live in Musanze, Rwanda.
“We are extremely grateful Warren, Stephen and Laurent have joined us as global board members to help fulfill our mission to serve clients and improve lives in the developing world,” said Vicki Escarra, Global CEO, Opportunity International. “Their vast experience in the business, education and nonprofit worlds will be key to helping us create and sustain 20 million jobs around the world by 2020.”
Opportunity International is a global non-profit organization that helps people in developing nations work their way out of poverty, transform their lives and strengthen their families and communities. Founded in 1971, the organization has provided more than $9 billion in loans to help clients launch and expand businesses, provide for their children and create jobs in their communities. Today, nearly 13 million people in 28 countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe, are using an Opportunity International loan, savings account or insurance policy to improve their lives. More than 94 percent of Opportunity’s loan clients are women who would otherwise never have access to financial services because of legal and cultural gender inequities in most developing nations. The global headquarters of Opportunity International are in Chicago, with other key offices in Australia, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Singapore, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The organization serves clients through a network of more than 17,500 people worldwide.
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