by Stefanie Rubin -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: World Vision International Affiliate, VisionFund Cambodia (VFC), Begins Disbursing Loans to Small Businesses Affected by Typhoon Ketsana

VisionFund Cambodia (VFC), an affiliate of California-based World Vision International (WVI), has begun disbursing USD 30,000 in “Express Loans” to small businesses affected by Typhoon Ketsana. Typhoon Ketsana swept through Southeast Asia in September 2009, killing over 600 people. According to the Cambodian National Committee for Disaster Management, the typhoon damaged 54,500 hectares of rice fields and 320 kilometers of rural roads and flooded more than 1,100 schools [1, 2].

by Diya Chopra -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: Burmese Military Authorities Plan First Microfinance Lending Program on Burma’s Western Border

Narinjara News, an internet news service run by democratic activists from Arkan State, Burma, reported plans of Burmese Military Authorities to launch the first microfinance program in Maungdaw, the westernmost part of Myanmar, Burma [1]. According to a past MicroCapital story, extensive lending in Myanmar has been limited, likely because of the region’s “unfavourable political environment stemming from the country’s military dictatorship” [2].

by Diya Chopra -

WHO’S WHO IN MICROFINANCE: Center for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD) Inc. of the Philippines

The Center for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD) Inc. was established in December 1986 as a social development fund. In 1997, it became the first NGO to transform into a licensed rural bank. CARD was founded by Dr. Jaime Aristotle B. Alip, and organized by 15 rural development practitioners as a response to the growing poverty rate in Regions IV and V of the Philippines. Their vision was to establish a bank created for, and owned and managed by landless rural women. In 1989, a group-lending pilot was launched by CARD, based on the Grameen Bank’s methodology. A year later, CARD launched its credit arm, the Landless People’s Development Fund (LPDF) [1].

by Goda Thangada -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Munich Re, Asuransi Wahana Tata (AWT), and GTZ Launch Flood Microinsurance Product in Indonesia

The ‘Alert 1 Manggarai Protection Card’, a microinsurance product which protects against flood, has been jointly launched by Indonesian insurance company Asuransi Wahana Tata (AWT) , German reinsurer Munich Re and the German government’s Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH. AWT is Munich Re’s local partner in Indonesia. A feasibility study has been conducted by Munich Re and GTZ and the product will now be available in 23 sub-districts in Jakarta. The product is literally a small card costingUSD 4.70 and guaranteeing a single payment of USD 23.90 . ‘Alert 1′ is the designation given to a flood if water rises to a minimum of 950 cm at Jakarta’ Manggarai Water Gate. The product was principally designed by Munich Re although most of the logistics, including marketing and sales, will be handled by AWT. Munich Re will act as the re-insurer of the product. GTZ conducted a great deal of background research, including household surveys in the 23 sub-districts and focus groups, and conducted a microinsurance awareness campaign consisting of training material and a brochure. The Promotion of Small Financial Institutions program, supported by GTZ in Indonesia, will be responsible for supporting the product in the field. AWT’s President Commissioner, Rudy Wanandi, comments, “With the right partners, a defined product and through our wide network within the region we are able to reach people and explain our innovative solutions. It will raise the insurance awareness of society and bring more economic stability and social security to people who live in exposed regions.” Currently, 3 percent of poor people have access to insurance products in the world’s 100 poorest countries.

by Andrea Chu -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Japan Gives USD 84,000 to Support Microcredit on the Thai-Burmese Border Through the Grassroots Human Security Projects Scheme

At the request of a local self-help group, the Japanese Government gave USD 84,000 through its embassy in Thailand for a microcredit initiative on the border of Thailand and Burma. The Government of Japan is extending THB 2.97 million (USD 84,000) to the Grassroots Human Security Projects scheme (GGP), a part of Japan’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) agency since 1989, under the “Micro Credit for Low Income Families on the Thai-Burmese Border” project. The Kyoji Komachi, the Ambassador of Japan to the Kingdom of Thailand, and Sakda Netek, Director of the Kwai River Christian Hospital Staff Self-Help Group, signed a contract on March 12, 2009 at the Embassy of Japan.

by Lori Curtis -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Indian Finance Minister Promises Credit to North Eastern Region

The Finance Minister of India stated that the North Eastern region of India would receive an increased flow of credit from the central government, addressing the Special Summit on Banking, Industries and Credit Issues in the North Eastern Region organised by the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) at Vigyan Bhavan. The Finance Minister, Chidambaram, stated that although the North Eastern region is not currently receiving enough credit, it will begin to. The Summit was attended by the Minister of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), the deputy Governor of Reserve Bank of India, the Chairman of the State Bank of India and other top officials of line ministries and financial institutions.

by Anthony Busch -

WHO’S WHO IN MICROFINANCE: Aloysius P. Fernandez

Aloysius P. Fernandez is the Executive Director, as well as board member, of Bangalore-based Mysore Resettlement and Development Agency (MYRADA), a non-governmental organization (NGO) in India which provides training programs for rural development in the Indian states of Karnataka, Andhrapradesh, and Tamil Nadu as well as staff support to 6 other states and promotion of the Self-help Affinity Strategy in Cambodia, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. MYRADA also publishes on various topics such as watershed development—projects which pursue better management of natural water resources—and NGO-government collaboration.