Making Cents International “Youth Financial Services: Implementing Good Practices in the Field”
March 2nd – 5th, 2009, Washington, DC, USA
Search Results for: "USAID"
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: Beyond Economic Benefits: The Contribution of Microfinance to Post-Conflict Recovery in Asia and the Pacific, by Pascal Marino
“Beyond Economic Benefits: The Contribution of Microfinance to Post-Conflict Recovery in Asia and the Pacific” was written by Pascal Marino, published in 2005 by The Foundation for Development Corporation in Brisbane, Australia, and presented at the University of Melbourne conference “Aid and Development in Conflict Environments: What are the lessons?” The full text of this report is 14 pages and available here. The paper is a literature review and synthesis of research on the impact of microfinance in nine different post-conflict countries in Asia and the Pacific, with a focus on Afghanistan, Indonesia (Maluku), Papua New Guinea (Boaguainville), Sri Lanka, and Timor Leste. It focuses on the difficulties in operating microfinance institutions (MFIs) in post-conflict zones and on the intangible benefits of microfinance through social capital enhancement: social mobilization, empowerment, democracy building, conflict resolution, refugee reintegration, and organization building.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: International Symposium on Microfinance as a Tool for Peacebuilding Discusses Rebuilding the Social and Economic Fabric in Post-Conflict Areas of Colombia through Microcredit
The International Symposium on Microfinance as a Tool for Peacebuilding discussed how microcredit could be used to rebuild the economy and promote growth in post-conflict areas of Colombia. According to this press release on the Symbiotics website, the symposium which was held in the city of Cali in Colombia was attended by nearly 2000 participants. Symbiotics is a microfinance information, consulting and services organization based in Switzerland. The symposium was sponsored by the Alvaralice Foundation, a Colombian non-profit established in 2003 and dedicated to promoting peace and economic growth in the country.
WHO’S WHO IN MICROFINANCE: The Microfinance Investment Support Facility for Afghanistan (MISFA)
In 2003 the Government of Afghanistan, along with international agencies, initiated the Microfinance Investment Support Facility for Afghanistan (MISFA) under the Ministry for Rural Rehabilitation and Development. The World Bank was the main international agency involved in creating the organization, with the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) acting as a key advisor. MISFA’s purpose is to act as an apex organization to foster a nascent microfinance sector by channeling financial support and technical assistance to microfinance institutions (MFIs) operating on the ground. It has three main goals (p2): (1) Coordinate donor funding so that the conflicting donor priorities that are endemic in post-conflict situations do not end up duplicating effort and distorting markets; (2) Help young MFIs scale up rapidly by offering performance-based funding for operations and technical assistance; (3) Build systems for transparent reporting to instill a culture of accountability. Since March 2006, MISFA has been operating outside the government as an independent entity (p239), because CGAP’s experience in the microfinance sector has shown that independence of government promotes effectiveness and efficiency.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) Aims to Promote Food Security Using Micro-Credit in Ghana; Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) and Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) of Ghana Sponsor a $241m Agricultural Project
Mr. Martin Eson-Benjamin, CEO of the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA), a government agency of Ghana that implements development contracts funded by the US Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), noted that improved micro-credit may emerge as a powerful tool to achieve national food security by providing financial and technical assistance needed by small scale farmers. The remarks came at the 4th annual microfinance conference organized by the faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Cape Coast (UCC), which addressed “Microfinance and Food Security in Africa.” The two-day event was also attended by delegates from other African nations.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: US Secretary of State Designate Hilary Clinton Refers to Obama’s Mother, Ann Dunham; Implies Microfinance Would be an Important Part of her Agenda
At a confirmation hearing before the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee, US Secretary of State designate Hilary Clinton, while speaking briefly about President-elect Barack Obama’s mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, implied that microfinance would be an important part of the Obama administration’s agenda. Senator Clinton noted that Ann Dunham had worked on microfinance in Indonesia and that she had been scheduled to attend a microfinance forum at a United Nations conference in Beijing in 1995, which Ms. Clinton attended. Ms. Dunham, however, could not make it to the conference as she was diagnosed with cancer that eventually claimed her life few months after the conference. MicroCapital recently reported on Ann Dunham’s work as a researcher and practitioner of microfinance in Indonesia and her philosophy on the empowerment of women as a means to address poverty. Hilary Clinton also expressed similar sentiments at the hearing where she stated how, through her work on microfinance around the world, she had ‘seen firsthand how small loans given to poor women to start small businesses can raise standards of living and transform local economies’.
PRESS RELEASE: Competition: Innovations in Financing Value Chains
Source: Microlinks
MICROFINANCE EVENT: “The Role of Donors and the Crisis” – A Microfinance Learning and Innovation Seminar from the US Agency for International Development (AID), January 7, 2009
THE ROLE OF DONORS AND THE CRISIS
JANUARY 7, 2009, WASHINGTON, DC, and ONLINE
Conan French of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) will moderate this discussion among Kate McKee of CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), Sandra Adams of the Grameen Foundation and April DuBois of Opportunity International on the effect of the global financial crisis on the role of donors, and the possible implications for microfinance institutions and their clients. “The Role of Donors and the Crisis” will take place at 4 pm eastern US time on January 7 at the offices of QED Group in Washington, DC, and will be broadcast as a webinar in order to enable remote participation. There is no charge to attend. To participate in person, RSVP by email. To participate remotely, register online. No telephone number is offered.
This is the second seminar in a mini-series on the impact of the current crisis on the microfinance industry. In the coming months, a number of topics relating to the current financial crisis will be covered, including its effects on savings, remittances and microinsurance. After this event, materials will be posted at the microLINKS “After Hours” webpage.
MICROFINANCE EVENT: microLINKS Hosts Capital Markets and the Crisis
CAPITAL MARKETS AND THE CRISIS
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Ghana’s HFC Bank, Boafo Microfinance and SSNIT Collaborate to Expand Microfinance Services in Ghana
An agreement was signed between the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) Informal Sector Fund, HFC Bank Ghana Limited, and Boafo Microfinance Services Limited to encourage the administration of credit to informal sector entrepreneurs who are contributors of SSNIT. Each of the collaborators will play an active role in the agreement, the purpose of which is to strengthen the economic security of people in the informal sectors, through the growth of businesses and occupational pension funds, in order to assist in the guarantee of economically stable households. The agreement has been conveyed by Director of the SSNIT informal sector fund, Dr. Francis Sapara-Grant, as an indication of “the need to harness the efforts of complementary institutions in the promotion of the welfare of the elderly and the eradication of destitution from the country” and a demonstration “that the business of providing social protection to the Ghanaian worker has assumed a different dimension through this creative and innovative approach”.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Kenya’s K-Rep Bank Records Loss in Profits, Receives New Capital from IFC, African Development Bank, Shorecap International, Triodos, FMO, K-Rep Group
K-Rep Bank CEO Kimanthi Mutua attributed a recorded loss in profit totalling Sh 209 million (USD 2.6 million) to post-election violence and massive investment in the bank’s information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure. The Daily Nation reported that Kenya’s K-Rep Bank reported a loss in profit according to an unaudited financial report ending September 30, 2008. The majority of K-Rep clients are low-income entrepreneurs located in neighbourhoods that were badly affected by the post-election violence. Shareholders have injected an additional Sh 1 billion (USD 12.7 million), which will be used to diversify and create new products to increase the bank’s market share and further develop ICT infrastructure, such as Temenos 24. In September 2007 K-Rep Bank reported profits of Sh146 million (USD 1.86 million).
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Citi Foundation and Jordan River Foundation Present 2008 Citi Microentrepreneurship Awards, Jordanian Government Pledges $7.1m to Local Microfinance Institutions (MFIs)
On November 16, the Citi Foundation, a philanthropic foundation dedicated to economic development, and the Jordan River Foundation (JRF), a Jordanian non-profit organization (NGO) focused on female entrepreneurship, held the 2008 Citi Microentrepreneurship Awards ceremony for Jordan.? The two groups and the Jordanian government highlighted the active role that micro-credit plays in alleviating local poverty and honored individual micro-entrepreneurs, including ten women. ? The Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MoPIC) also announced new funding initiatives for the microfinance sector.
MICROCAPITAL PAPER WRAP-UP: Innovations in Microfinance in Southeast Asia, by Gilberto M. Llanto and Ryu Fukui
Written by Gilberto M. Llanto and Ryu Fukui and based on secondary research carried out by the authors, released in July 2003 by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies as Discussion Paper No. 2003-11, 18 pages, available on November 16, 2008 at: http://econpapers.repec.org/paper/phddpaper/dp_5F2003-11.htm
Gilberto M. Llanto and Ryu Fukui describe the “emerging innovations” in microfinance observed through 2003 in Southeast Asian markets, innovations that made it possible for microfinance institutions (MFIs) to reach a greater number of poor households in a sustainable manner. These innovations help reduce MFIs’ transaction costs and risks and enabled poor households to smooth their investment and consumption patterns. While the paper also argues for government support of microfinance (p. 13-14), the rest of this paper wrap-up summarizes the nature and extent to which these three innovations have strengthened Southeast Asian microfinance.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: IFC Explores Investment Opportunities in Southern Sudan
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has announced in a press release that it will explore emerging microfinance investment opportunities in Southern Sudan. Jean Philippe Prosper, the IFC Director for Southern and Eastern Africa recently visited Southern Sudan and reported that, “More stable conditions on the ground and an improved business environment have created the right conditions for IFC and other investors to consider new investments in Southern Sudan”. An investment climate team from IFC and FIAS, a multidonor investment climate advisory service of the World Bank Group, has been providing assistance to Southern Sudan since 2006.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Code of Ethics Signed at Jordanian Government Ceremony by Local MFIs Microfund for Women, Alwatani, Al-Ahli Microfinance Company, Tamweelcom, Middle East Microcredit Company (MEMCO), FINCA-Jordan, and the Development and Employment Fund (DEF)
Figures released by Jordan’s Planning Ministry indicate that over 120,000 citizens have borrowed from local microfinance institutions (MFIs) with loans outstanding at JD 65 million, the dollar equivalent of over USD 91 million. Specifically, 7 Jordanian MFIs were recognized at a Ministry ceremony where each signed a code of ethics governing this joint effort.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Assets in Philippines’ Rural Banking Industry Grow By 15.72%
The rural banking industry in the Philippines has grown, with assets increasing 15.72 percent in the first quarter of 2008 to P161.08 billion (USD 3.32 billion) it was reported in the Philippine Star on November 4, 2008. Assets grew by 7.78 percent from the 2007 end of P149.46 billion (USD 3.08 billion). The Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP) predicted that the rural banking industry would continue to grow by another 15 percent for the whole of 2008, the average growth rate registered by the industry over the past five years. The RBAP has said that their member banks have reported strong growth in the third quarter. Additionally, 2008 marks the first year that rural banks have managed more than six million deposit accounts. The emphasis placed on microfinance and the agricultural industry were reported as “key” to this growth in rural banking.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Study Reveals Ghanaian Women Still Face Challenges Accessing Microfinance
A recent study funded by the Business Sector Advocacy Challenge Fund (BUSAC) has revealed that rural women accessing microfinance in Ghana continue to face barriers when compared with men. Dr. Irene S. Egyir, Lead Researcher on the project and Lecturer at the University of Ghana, spoke at a sensitization workshop saying that although women were participating in productive sectors, their lack of access to microfinance made it difficult for them to play their roles effectively, reported in The Ghanaian Journal. The research indicated that though most financial institutions had embraced the challenge of assisting micro businesses, females continued to receive less access to such credits.
MICROCAPITAL PAPER WRAP-UP: Islamic Microfinance: An Emerging Market Niche, by Nimrah Karim, Michael Tarazi and Xavier Reille
Written by Nimrah Karim, Michael Tarazi and Xavier Reille and based primarily on secondary research by the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), released in August 2008 as Number 49 of Focus Note, a publication of CGAP, 16 pages, available on October 27, 2008 at: http://www2.cgap.org/gm/document-1.9.5029/FocusNote_49.pdf.