How it works: Education workers provide goods and services to schools - or even start their own schools, offering education from the preschool to the professional training level.

Why it's important: Universal access to quality education is still a distant dream in most developing countries. Government-provided schools are often too far away, too expensive, or of poor quality. Social entrepreneurs step in to fill the gap, opening affordable academies for children of low-income communities, and offering training that allows young adults to qualify for higher-paying professional jobs.

What your loan can do: Small-scale business owners typically serve low-income students at discounted tuition rates. This allows them to cover their costs, but makes it difficult to accumulate enough revenue to reinvest in growing the business. Loans make it possible to add classrooms, teachers, computers and other educational equipment, increasing the capacity of the school, so that larger numbers of students can be connected to education sooner.