The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has awarded six grants worth a total of USD 38 million to help 18 microfinance institutions (MFIs) expand or launch savings initiatives. Grantees include ACCION International with USD 5.8 million; FINCA International with USD 5.4 million; Grameen Foundation with USD 9.8 million; ShoreBank International with USD 5.5 million; Women’s World Banking with USD 8.5 million; and World Vision with USD 3.3 million.
According to a press release by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the grants will “make savings accounts available to an initial 11 million poor people across 12 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America over five years. The grants will create new ways for the poor to make deposits and withdrawals, expand the availability of existing savings products, and fund savings-focused marketing campaigns.”
The grant to ACCION International will be allocated to three MFIs: BancoSol of Bolivia, Finamérica of Colombia and a third institution that has yet to be selected. The MFIs will use this grant to increase agent banking and mobile banks, and provide access to savings accounts over mobile phones.
FINCA’s grant will allow FINCA Uganda, FINCA Ecuador and FINCA Democratic Republic of the Congo to offer savings to groups and individuals who currently receive microcredit.
The grant to the Grameen Foundation will allow the following MFIs to offer savings products: Amhara Credit and Savings Institution of Ethiopia, the Center for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD) Bank of the Philippines and Cashpor MicroCredit of India.
ShoreBank International’s grant will deliver products and services to an estimated 1.5 million people across South Asia through the following MFIs: Krishna Bhima Samrudhi Local Area Bank of India, Khushhali Bank of Pakistan, National Rural Support Programme Microfinance Bank of Pakistan and BRAC Bank of Bangladesh.
Women’s World Banking (WWB) will use its grant to help Banco ADOPEM of the Dominican Republic, WWB Colombia, Kenya Women Finance Trust and the Kashf Microfinance Bank of Pakistan extend savings products to an estimated 3.5 million people. WWB will also launch a TV serial drama in the Dominican Republic to advocate savings.
Lastly, World Vision will work with an affiliate MFI, WISDOM, to offer savings accounts to over 600,000 people in Ethiopia through mobile technologies.
By: Stefanie Rubin, Research Assistant
About the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation:
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provides grants to organizations within the United States and in more than 100 countries around the world with the aim of enhancing health care, reducing poverty and expanding educational opportunities and access to information technology.
As of September 2009, the asset trust endowment totaled USD 34.17 billion. USD 21.08 billion in grants has been committed since the foundation’s inception.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Financial Services for the Poor initiative focuses on providing people with secure places to save money. To support this initiative, the foundation works with financial organizations to increase access to technology (point of sales devices, automated teller machines, etc.) and forge partnerships between mobile phone companies, banks and microfinance institutions. It also supports the startup and growth of new banks in difficult markets.
About ACCION International:
ACCION International was founded in 1961 with the aim of alleviating poverty in Latin America. In 1973 it began to focus primarily on microfinance. As of 2008, its affiliated programs had made USD 23.4 billion in micro loans to over 7.7 million people. More than 800,000 clients of ACCION’s partners had savings accounts.
About FINCA International:
Established in 1984, FINCA International provides financial services to over 700,000 poor clients in 21 countries.
About Grameen Foundation:
The Grameen Foundation aims to help microfinance institutions throughout the world replicate the microfinance model of the Grameen Bank. It provides financial, technological, and managerial support for local organizations and intends to provide new business opportunities and telecommunication services to the rural poor. The Grameen Foundation works with MFIs in about 37 countries worldwide. Though the Grameen Foundation is independent of the Grameen Bank, Muhammad Yunus, the founder of the Grameen Bank, serves on the foundation’s Board of Directors.
About ShoreBank International (SBI):
ShoreBank International (SBI) is “dedicated to expanding access to capital for small businesses, entrepreneurs and households. Its core sectors include small business finance, microfinance and housing finance. SBI has assisted 77 partner banks advance over 73,000 loans worth USD 633 million.
About Women’s World Banking (WWB):
WWB is a global network of 54 microfinance providers and banks, working in 30 countries to bring financial products and services to low-income entrepreneurs, especially women. WWB’s team of 40 microfinance professionals works with member institutions to develop innovative business strategies, strengthen their organizations, and create products that best meet the needs of the poor in the communities they serve. The WWB network serves over 21 million micro-entrepreneurs.
About World Vision:
World Vision is a private relief and development organization with the aim of alleviating poverty. It is active in three areas: providing immediate disaster relief; developing long-term, sustainable programs; and sponsoring children in need. According to World Vision’s 2008 Review, the organization served over 100 million people across 98 countries in 2008. During FY2008, its total revenue was USD 1.1 billion, and it provided USD 314.6 million in aid for relief and rehabilitation, community development, and Christian impact and leadership projects. USD 208.4 million was provided for child sponsorships, USD 219.3 million for gifts-in-kind and USD 132.6 million for other international relief and development programs. Total operating expenses during this period amounted to USD 1.13 billion.
World Vision began implementing microfinance programs in 1993 and has since established 47 microfinance institutions (MFIs). In 2003, it created VisionFund International, a wholly-owned subsidiary, to manage its MFIs.
Additional Resources:
Source Article: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: Grants Signal New Movement Toward Savings Accounts for the Poor: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/press-releases/Pages/microfinancing-institutions-helping-poor-save-money-100113.aspx
ACCION International: http://www.accion.org/
FINCA International: http://www.villagebanking.org/
MicroCapital Universe: Grameen Foundation: https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Grameen+Foundation
ShoreBank International: http://shorebankinternational.com/
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