by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: An Interview with Christoph Pausch of e-MFP on European Microfinance Week, Luxembourg & Online, November 2023

e-MFP logoMicroCapital: What can we expect from EMW2023, happening in-person November 15-17 in Luxembourg and online?
Christoph Pausch: EMW2022, back in-person after two years, showed us that there is no substitute for getting the opinion leaders and decision-makers in the inclusive finance sector together in-person, ensuring they have the time and space to debate, make new connections, and of course give presentations and discuss the various challenges and innovations under­way around the world.

After the success of the hy­brid EMW2022, which gathered 570 attend­ees (including over 200 who joined us online) from 48 countries, we are delighted to return to the beautiful Abbaye de Neumunster in Luxem­bourg for another hybrid event, which will once again offer an excep­tion­al networking and knowledge-sharing experi­ence with the top ex­perts in the financial inclusion sector. And the programme is designed to be as conducive as possible to those joining us online from different time zones. Plus, sessions will be re­corded for “catch-up” after.

MC: What choices of sessions can attendees expect?
CP: As always, EMW sessions have been put forward largely by our members – so they address the sector’s current “hot topics” – and we organise them across several thematic streams. We received an enor­mous response to our call for proposals that went out early in the sum­mer, giving us great scope for a fascinating, diverse program across different streams. In addition to our usual annual topic areas – digiti­sation, social performance, funding/investment – this year there also will be streams on refugee finance, agri-finance, a particular emphasis on

by James Stevenson -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: 5th Global Takaful and Re-takaful Forum; September 19-21, 2023; Dubai, UAE

This event includes a one-day forum on September 19 followed by a two-day workshop on the historical, “operational and practical aspects” of takaful, re-takaful and micro-takaful, types of insurance that comply with Islamic law. The goals of these events are to

by Elva Montelongo -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Africa Fintech Summit (AFTS); November 2-3, 2023; Lusaka, Zambia

Twice a year, this event convenes to promote collaboration on entrepreneurship as well as issues and opportunities regarding financial technology (fintech) in Africa. Following a pre-event dinner on November 1, the first day will include a

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Navigating the Future of Impact Investing in Asia; May 9, 2023; Hong Kong, China

Attendees at this conference will debate investing “with the intention to generate social and environmental impact alongside a financial return” in Asia and worldwide. The topics to be covered include: 1) the current status of the sector; 2) methods for

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: X Conferencia Centroamericana y del Caribe de Microfinanzas; March 20-22, 2023; Antigua, Guatemala

The tenth Central American and Caribbean microfinance conference is themed “Resilience and recovery of financial inclusion in the new reality.” The first morning is a forum for showcasing new technologies. The remaining two days will cover themes such as digital transformation, gender equity,

by Nick Weising -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Cracking the Nut: Reducing Risk in Rural and Agricultural Investment; June 12-13, 2023; Washington, DC, USA

This tenth iteration of “Cracking the Nut” will explore opportunities to finance agricultural supply chains to meet the needs of people working in the informal agriculture segment in low- and middle-income countries. The conference will focus on reducing the risk of investing in agricultural and

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Inclusive Finance in Africa Amid the Current Food and Climate Crises, in Anticipation of SAM 2023 in West Africa

In anticipation of SAM 2023 (Semaine Afri­caine de la Microfinance 2023), its organisers convened a panel discus­sion on October 19 as part of Accion’s Financial Inclusion Week. The panel illustrates the commitment of SAM’s organisers to nurture on­going dia­logue on the issues faced by the inclusive finance sector. The objective was to share and question the strategies being used to address issues faced by the agricultural sector, which remains one of the least financed due to investors’ per­ception of it as high-risk.

Climate change coupled with social and political turmoil is negatively impacting agricultural value chains in particular and global food security in general. The conflict between Ukraine and Russia is lowering food security and agricultural pro­duction in many developing countries, as the warring nations are two of the largest exporters of key agricultural commodities such as wheat, corn, sunflower oil and fertiliser. The Horn of Africa could suffer the worst effects of the war because of its ongoing food crisis following three years of severe drought, the COVID-19 pan­demic and protracted local conflicts. Market volatility and rises in energy costs, input costs, interest rates and perceived risk are expected to lead to higher costs of borrow­ing, credit crunches, and unmet working capital and liquidity needs.

Addressing these issues at the Financial Inclusion Week panel were:

– Jacques Afetor, Executive Director of Assilassimé Solidarité, a Togolese MFI supporting

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: European Microfinance Week Is Almost Here!

e-MFP logoEuropean Microfinance Week (EMW) 2022 is fast approaching, and we’re delighted that it will be in-person again, with a hybrid component for remote speakers and participants. EMW2022 offers more than 30 sessions organised across several thematic streams, including “Finan­cial Inclusion that Works for Women” – the topic of the European Micro­finance Award 2022 – as well as green and climate-smart finance, digital­isation, funding, financial health, and social performance and impact. Other subject areas include agri-insurance, women’s leadership, fund regu­la­tion, mobile money, biodiversity, refugee finance, WASH, food security and more. To give MicroCapital readers a sense of what they can look forward to, here are some details of just three of the EMW2022 thematic streams:

Climate and Green Finance
Climate change represents one of the greatest issues the world faces today. While the changing climate impacts all countries, sectors and people, they are not all affected in the same ways. Climate change is par­ticularly threatening to poor and marginalised communities. Tackling the issue requires battling on many fronts – not just on the mitigation side (mini­mising the actual climate change that takes place), but on the adap­ta­­tion side too. The financial inclusion sector has an important role in increas­ing the resilience of communities most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, and EMW2022 will feature a variety of related sessions, including:

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Themed “Inclusive Growth in a Digital Era,” Financial Inclusion Week 2022 Offers 180 Virtual Sessions, October 17-20

For the eighth year, the Center for Financial Inclusion, a program of the US-based NGO Accion, is organizing Financial Inclusion Week, an opportunity for all stakeholders to attend virtual sessions – both live and on-demand – at no charge. The theme for 2022 is “Inclusive Growth in a Digital Era,” with sessions covering 14 topics such as Climate Change, Client Protection,

by Benjamin Greissman -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (LHoFT) Accepting Applications from Fintechs for “Catapult: Inclusion Africa” Through September 15

The Luxembourg House of Financial Technology Foundation (LHoFT), a public-private partnership, is hosting the fifth iteration of its Catapult: Inclusion Africa event. The aim is to support financial inclusion in Africa through financial technology (fintech) by connecting 10 winning companies to “microfinance institutions, investors and industry experts….” To be eligible,

by Benjamin Greissman -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: CERISE+SPTF Annual Meeting; Towards Impact Conference; September 28-30, 2022; Paris, France

The first of these events – the combined annual meeting of the Social Performance Task Force (SPTF) and Comité d’Echange, de Réflexion et sur les Systèmes d’Epargne-Crédit (CERISE) – is titled Celebrating 10 Years of the Universal Standards for Social and Environmental Performance Management. The first day will include

by Hasnat Aslam -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (LHoFT) Accepting Applications for “Catapult: Kickstarter” Fintech Development Programme

Catapult: Kickstarter, a two-week programme organized by the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (LHoFT) Foundation, aims to aid financial technology (fintech) startups with tutorials, networking and mentorship on issues such as creating a business plan, managing risk and growing the business. The organizers will select 10 fintechs to participate in the program, which will run from June 20 to July 1, 2022. On the closing day, the participants will

by Vighnesh Avadhanam -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: 3rd CIS Islamic Banking and Finance Forum; May 25-27, 2022; Baku, Azerbaijan

The organizers of this forum aim to promote Islamic finance in the nine-member countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). Islamic finance is that which is compliant with Shariah law, such as by an investor sharing profit and loss rather than charging interest for a loan. The main event is on May 25, followed by a post-event workshop on May 26 and May 27. The topics on the agenda for the first day of the forum include takaful – Islamic insurance – as well as how Islamic

by Bradley Shulman -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Convergences 3Zero World Forum; September 2-3, 2021; Paris, France, with Virtual Option

The 3Zero World Forum will connect professionals in various fields as well as interested citizens in an “exchange and sharing of solutions” with respect to the “3Zero” objective: zero exclusion, zero carbon and zero poverty. The agenda is to cover areas such as “Transforming Economic Models and Organisations Towards a 3Zero World” and

by Tejas Gumudavelly -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Africa Agri-Trade & Finance Forum; May 26, 2021; Nairobi, Kenya

Adiem Business Solutions is hosting this event for the fourth year, with a focus on “building [a] sustainable agribusiness economy.” It will address topics such as “smart agriculture in Africa,” “farmer management,” technology for agriculture, and the marketing and regulation of produce. Although the detailed agenda for this year’s edition has not been released, previous iterations included

by Harriet Ritchie -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: FinovateFall; September 13-15, 2021; New York, New York, USA

FinovateFall is one of a series of conferences focusing on financial technology (fintech). The event includes demonstrations of new fintech products, networking opportunities and approximately 120 speakers. Although the agenda for this year has yet to be announced, the 2020 agenda included sessions such as Keynote presentations by Pablos Holman, inventor at the Intellectual Ventures Lab; Sarika Sangwan, Global Head of strategy and marketing at Pinterest; and a panel discussion of post-Covid innovation. Details regarding an option to participate virtually are under development.