Themed “Inclusive Finance for the Agricultural Value Chain,” this event will include discussions about new financial product offerings for small-scale farmers and the obstacles impeding capital investment in the agricultural sector
Search Results for: Rwanda
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroFinanza Rating Issues 6 Institutional, Social Ratings to Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in Africa, Latin America
Italy-based MicroFinanza Rating recently told MicroCapital that during May it issued two Social Ratings and four Microfinance Institutional Ratings (MIRs) to five microfinance institutions in Africa and Latin America. FMC Finance of Zimbabwe earned a Social Rating of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO, Proparco Lend $30m to BPR to Serve More SMEs via Larger Branch Network, Digital Banking
The Netherlands Development Finance Company, a government-backed institution also known by its Dutch acronym FMO, and Proparco, a subsidiary of the French government’s Agence Française de Développement (AFD), each recently loaned USD 15 million to Banque Populaire du Rwanda (BPR), a unit of the British Virgin Island’s-based Atlas Mara Group. Proparco served as
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mastercard, Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Uganda Partnering on Digital Payments for Agriculture, Education, Health and Trade
Mastercard, a US-based payment processing company, and Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Uganda, an NGO funded by the UK Department for International Development, recently entered a memorandum of understanding to create
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Somalia Launches iRise Technology Innovation Hub to Support Youth Entrepreneurs
The government of Somalia recently created
SPECIAL REPORT: “Lessons from Micro-leasing” at European Microfinance Week
MicroCapital: How does micro-leasing compare with microlending?
Manuel Hörl: Microcredits do not fit the needs of every situation. Often, the borrower cannot meet the collateral or other requirements for receiving a loan. Micro-leasing can allow a farmer, for example, to pre-finance the purchase of a productive asset, such as a cow. The farmer receives basic training in handling the asset, and risk is mitigated by
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: CGAP, Pula Announce Microinsurance Partnership for Farmers in Nigeria
CGAP (the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), a US-based, nonprofit research center that aims to facilitate the expansion of financial access, and Pula, a Kenya-based, agricultural insurance intermediary that serves small-scale farmers by leveraging satellite technology, recently announced that they are partnering to deliver “satellite-based agricultural insurance” to farmers in Nigeria.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Investment Bank (EIB) Provides Credit Lines Totaling $101m for Equity Bank, HFC to Support Microfinance in DRC, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda
The EU’s European Investment Bank (EIB) recently announced it has opened two new credit lines to support small-scale enterprises in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. The larger credit line is in the amount of EUR 75 million (USD 80 million) in the name of Equity Bank, a Kenya-based
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: How the Private Sector Can Boost Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa; the Role of Impact Investing in Achieving SDGs in Africa; Documenting Reforms to “Doing Business”
Entreprenante Afrique; by Jean-Michel Severino and Jérémy Hajdenberg; published in French by Odile Jacob; September 2016; 288 pages; available for purchase at: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=_vslDQAAQBAJ&rdid=book-_vslDQAAQBAJ&rdot=1&source=gbs_vpt_buy&pcampaignid=books_booksearch_atb
Jean-Michel Severino and Jérémy Hajdenberg argue that the 5-percent average annual growth rate Sub-Saharan Africa has experienced since 2000 is being driven significantly by the region’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
SPECIAL REPORT: Uniting Refugees, Locals via Lending Groups: European Microfinance Week Opens in Luxembourg
Among today’s opening meetings of European Microfinance Week was a working session on the financial inclusion of refugees that was organized by the US-based nonprofit Social Performance Task Force (SPTF) and the Luxembourgish nonprofit European Microfinance Platform (e-EMP). Lene Hansen, a consultant to SPTF, offered evidence to counter some of the common misconceptions discouraging microfinance institutions (MFIs) and their funders from serving refugees. Key among these is
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: 2016 Brookings Financial and Digital Inclusion Project Report; by John Villasenor, Darrell West, Robin Lewis
“The 2016 Brookings Financial and Digital Inclusion Project Report Advancing Equitable Financial Ecosystems;” by John D. Villasenor, Darrell M. West and Robin J. Lewis; published by the Center for Technology Innovation at the Brookings Institution; August 2016; 146 pages;
MICROFINANCE PAPER ROUND-UP: Managing Risks for Smallholders in Africa, Financing Shortfall for Women-owned Enterprises in Indonesia, Perspectives of Banks in Emerging Countries on Financial Inclusion
“Finance for Smallholders: Opportunities for Risk Management by Linking Financial Institutions and Producer Organisations;” by J de la Rive Box et al; published by the Food & Business Knowledge Platform, Agri Pro Focus and the Platform for Inclusive Finance NPM; May 2016; 22 pages; available at: http://www.inclusivefinanceplatform.nl/documents/npm%20summary%20report%20finance%20for%20smallholders.pdf
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FSD Africa, SEEP Network to Fund Research on Savings Groups
The Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Africa, a Kenya-based nonprofit intended to reduce poverty in sub-Saharan Africa, and the Small Enterprise Education and Promotion (SEEP) Network, a US-based network of approximately 124 microenterprise practitioners representing 170 countries, recently partnered to conduct research on the effectiveness of savings groups, “in which members provide their own savings and credit services at a negligible cost, while retaining earnings and capital in their own communities” [2]. FSD Africa plans to donate USD 2.5 million over four years to expand the SEEP Network’s research on these groups.
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Mobile Money in Africa; Doing Business in Kyrgyzstan; Digitalization of Kenya’s Premier Credit
“Mobile Money Momentum in Four African Countries;” published by CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor); December 2015; 101 pages; available at: http://www.cgap.org/news/new-data-cgap-sets-benchmark-use-mobile-financial-services
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Penn Microfinance to Host 10th Annual Conference: Banking on Change; April 9, 2016; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Event Name: 10th Annual Penn Microfinance Conference: Banking on Change
Event Date: April 9, 2016; 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Event Location: University of Pennsylvania, Huntsman Hall; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Financial Sector Development Program (FSD) Africa to Invest $2m in Microinsurance Innovation Laboratory of International Labor Organization’s (ILO’s) Impact Insurance Facility
The Financial Sector Development Program (FSD) Africa, a project funded by the UK’s Department for International Development (DfID), will invest USD 1.8 million over the next four years in the “microinsurance innovation laboratory” to be developed by the Impact Insurance Facility (IIF) of the International Labor Organization (ILO), an agency of the United Nations.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: World Vision UK, VisionFund International Prepare for El Niño Response in Africa with $3m “Returnable” Donation from UK Government’s Department for International Development (DFID)
The UK government’s Department for International Development (DFID) recently awarded a “returnable” grant of GBP 2 million (USD 3 million) to World Vision UK, a branch of US-based NGO World Vision International, and VisionFund International, a microfinance organization owned by World Vision, to help families in six African countries recover from anticipated severe weather caused by El Niño, a phenomenon of warmer than average waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
SPECIAL REPORT: Good News, “Painful” News About Digital Finance at the Final Day of European Microfinance Week
In moderating Friday’s panel on “Integrating digital financial services” at European Microfinance Week, Philippe Breul of PHB Development opened with several examples of success: (1) Microfinance institution (MFI) Musoni Kenya reducing loan turnaround time from 72 to 6 hours; (2) Indian MFI Ujjivan boosting loan officers’ caseloads by 134 percent; and (3) Opportunity Bank Serbia, which operates in an area of better mobile connectivity than the other two MFIs, providing immediate credit decisions in response to 80 percent of loan applications. Mr Breul stated that the time period required to save enough on costs to offset the expense of the tablets and other elements of digital systems can be as low as