RDF is Proud to Partner in the Count On Us AZ Campaign
Count On Us! This month and through October, we not only celebrate our heritage and Latino leaders for Hispanic Heritage Month, but we also have a special message: Arizona counts on Latinos!
As a support corporation of UnidosUS, Raza Development Fund is proud to partner in the Count On Us AZ campaign. Together, along with Arizona’s UnidosUS affiliate nonprofit organizations, we’ll raise awareness of Latinos’ contributions to Arizona’s economy and culture while inspiring action to remove barriers that Latinos and others face—in employment, education, housing, and health care.
For RDF, this campaign is a perfect alignment with our work and mission.
Latinos’ Contributions
As a Community Development Financial Institution, RDF provides financial solutions like grants and low-cost loans to Latinos across the country. We are always excited to watch as our clients utilize our financing to strengthen their families, businesses, and communities – exponentially growing the impact of our investment. And we are proud to say after investing over $1.3 billion in financing across the country, a majority to Latinos-serving organizations, RDF has had less than 1% loss rate. This in itself proves that Latinos are a great investment!
And the Arizona data backs this up. Right now, the Latino population has become the largest demographic group in Phoenix. According to the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce DATOS, Arizona Latinos produce goods and services worth more than $90B each year and spend over $63B a year at Arizona’s businesses. Plus, Latino-owned businesses employ more than a million Arizonans. According to the American Communities Survey, more than 7 in 10 front line essential workers in Arizona meaning the state’s hospitality, agriculture, healthcare and professional services depend on Latinos.
Removing Barriers
By highlighting Latinos’ contributions, together we can show the importance for Latinos to have equitable access to employment, education, housing and healthcare – areas that have historically presented barriers for Latinos. 
For example, the homeownership rate of Latinos in Arizona is almost double that of the US population as a whole, but not enough homes are being built in areas with high Latino populations. Additionally, Latinos spend a higher percentage of their income on housing than others in the state. Almost 25% of Latinos spend more than a third of their income on rent or mortgage, compared with 16% of non-Latinos.
That’s why the RDF team works diligently to provide capital to create better opportunities for our Latino communities focusing on these specific areas. In Arizona alone, RDF has provided financial investments to support over 2,000 affordable housing units. By investing in healthcare and social service programs, RDF has supported care for over 19,000 families and 40,000 patients annually.
RDF is proud to continue to scale our impact in the Latino community and we know we can’t do it alone. We value the support of our partners and affiliate organizations to help bridge gaps in equity for the Latino community.
Coming Up
The goal is for the Count On Us campaign to spark conversations and contribute to the way people see the Latino community making sure everyone understands that we are important contributors.
In the next few weeks, stay tuned with us as we spotlight RDF Familia and other community leaders who are passionate about lifting up Latinos.
