CDFIs in Indian Country: More than a Decade of Momentous Growth
Beyond First Nations and its board of directors’ wildest dreams! That is how I would characterize First Nations Oweesta Corporation’s many achievements in its very short history.
It is difficult to believe that it has been 15 years since First Nations Development Institute was able to get drafters of the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) legislation to keep the Indian Country-specific language in the bill that President Clinton signed into law (language initially placed in the bill by Roger Boyd and the folks at the Navajo Nation). The law set the wheels in motion for the creation of what is now First Nations Oweesta Corporation.
Before the signing of the legislation, the Oweesta program under First Nations coordinated industry-wide initiatives to increase the availability of capital, credit and financial services to reservation communities across the United States.
And while the legislation signing was an important milestone, it was the First Nations Oweesta board of directors’ hiring of an entrepreneurial team 10 years ago that gave the newly formed subsidiary the zeal necessary for incredible growth. Native CDFIs have become an industry that not only works beside reservation communities to create institutions that provide access to ‘right-sized’ capital, but also do so much more. First Nations Oweesta provides both financial capital and technical assistance to reservation-based nonprofits working to eliminate barriers to credit and increase wealth through entrepreneurship, as well as provide capitalization to the established and emerging Native CDFIs.
What has this meant? As First Nations Oweesta surpasses its decade milestone, it has worked with reservation-based community partners to grow the industry from two Native CDFIs to the more than 65 we see today. The technical assistance has provided the necessary training that helped these same communities receive more than 175 awards from the U.S. Treasury Department’s CDFI Fund, totaling more than $31 million.
As we take this moment to reflect on these accomplishments, we need to acknowledge our partners: the CDFI Fund, whose staff have been strong supporters of First Nations Oweesta’s work; our foundation partners that provide both credit capital and much needed operating income; First Nations Oweesta’s staff that create and run the programs; and most importantly, the reservation communities themselves for inviting us to join them in their dreams and their hard work. We will continue to be a good partner in enabling their work that allows Native communities to thrive and move ahead.
