MFTransparency, a US-based nongovernmental organization that provides information on credit products and pricing, recently announced plans to expand its Transparent Pricing Initiative to Guinea Bissau and Tanzania with the objective of collecting and publishing pricing data for microfinance products offered in each country and providing training on financial literacy for microfinance clients. MFTransparency will collaborate with the local microfinance institution (MFI) network Association Professionnelle des Systèmes Financiers Décentralisés – Guinée Bissau (APSFD-GB) and regional partners International Network of Alternative Financial Institutions (INAFI) and the African Microfinance Network (AFMIN) to host a workshop in Bissau on June 14, 2011. MFTransparency staff will provide training on pricing transparency to staff of local industry stakeholders including MFIs, regulators and funders. The Transparent Pricing Initiative in Guinea Bissau is sponsored by Luxembourg Agency for Development Cooperation, an agency that manages international aid funds from the government of Luxembourg.
MFTransparency will partner with the Tanzania Association of Microfinance Institutions (TAMFI) to host a similar workshop in Dar es Salaam on June 10, 2011 and a second workshop in Arusha on June 13, 2011. Both workshops will mark the launch of the Transparent Pricing Initiative in Tanzania as well as the launch of the seventh country project in the broader Enabling APR and EIR Program (Enabling Africa to Price Responsibly & Educate on Interest Rates), which is sponsored by Canada’s MasterCard Foundation.
By Jacqueline Foelster, Research Associate
About MFTransparency: MFTransparency is a US-based nongovernmental organization (NGO) that was launched in July 2008 to provide information on microcredit products and their prices. MFTransparency collects data on the interest and fees charged on microfinance loan products in order to calculate the effective interest rates on those loans. Its intention is to establish the industry standard for pricing disclosure and to facilitate a fair exchange of microfinance products between suppliers and consumers. As of April 2011, MFTransparency has released pricing data from eight countries.
About Association Professionnelle des Systèmes Financiers Décentralisés – Guinée Bissau (APSFD-GB): L’Association Professionelle des Systèmes Financiers Décentralisés – Guinée Bissau (APSFD-GB) is meant to serve as a forum to facilitate information exchange and technical training among Guinea Bissau’s microfinance institutions (MFIs). Additional information on APSFD-GB is not available.
About International Network of Alternative Financial Institutions (INAFI): Established in 1995 in Peru, the International Network of Alternative Financial Institutions (INAFI) is a global network of microfinance practitioners located across Africa, Asia and Latin America that are committed to poverty reduction. Now based in Senegal, its activities are focused on supporting product development and promoting social impact measurement. As of May 2011, INAFI has approximately 307 member organizations with an aggregate loan portfolio of USD 700 million and 25 million clients.
About Tanzania Association of Microfinance Institutions (TAMFI): Tanzania Association of Microfinance Institutions (TAMFI) aims to support capacity development of microfinance institutions in Tanzania through lobbying, advocacy, training and information gathering and dissemination. As of March 2009, it has approximately 13 member institutions. The Coalition of Tanzanian Microfinance Practitioners and Service Providers Limited merged with TAMFI in July 2010.
Source and Additional Resources:
[1] MFTransparency Press Release, May 27, 2011, “MFTransparency to Launch the Transparent Pricing Initiative in Guinea Bissau”, http://www.mftransparency.org/pages/mftransparency-to-launch-the-transparent-pricing-initiative-in-guinea-bissau/
[2] MFTransparency Press Release, May 27, 2011, “MFTransparency and the Tanzania Association of Microfinance Institutions to Launch the Transparent Pricing Initiative in Tanzania”, http://www.mftransparency.org/pages/mftransparency-and-the-tanzania-association-of-microfinance-institutions-to-launch-the-transparent-pricing-initiative-in-tanzania/
MicroCapital.org Brief, March 15, 2011, “Ghana Microfinance Institutions Network (GHAMFIN) Launch Transparent Pricing Initiative in Ghana”, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-mftransparency-ghana-microfinance-institutions-network-ghamfin-launch-transparent-pricing-initiative-in-ghana/
MicroCapital.org Brief, July 6, 2010, “MFTransparency to Launch Transparent Pricing Initiative in Eight West African Countries, in Partnership with Luxembourg Development Cooperation”, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-mftransparency-to-launch-transparent-pricing-initiative-in-eight-west-african-countries-in-partnership-with-luxembourg-development-cooperation/
MicroCapital Universe Profile: MFTransparency, https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=MFTransparency
MicroCapital Universe Profile: International Network of Alternative Financial Institutions (INAFI), https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=International+Network+of+Alternative+Financial+Institutions
MicroCapital Universe Profile: Tanzania Association of Microfinance Institutions (TAMFI), https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=The+Tanzania+Association+of+Microfinance+Institutions+%28TAMFI%29
Browse the MicroCapital Universe and add your entry to the wiki at https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/
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