Published by Accounting Forum, Vol. 31 No. 1, March 2007, 25 pages, available by subscription through Science Direct: doi:10.1016/j.accfor.2006.11.005.

The apparent shift of microfinance institutions (MFIs) to commercialization is characterized by the increasing importance that donors place on factors like repayment rates, good loan books, and client numbers. However, in looking at institutional sustainability, research has generally neglected the key role of field workers or loan officers in interfacing with the poor. The existing literature on loan officers in MFIs is limited and mostly concerns the geographic area of Asia, while other regions, especially Africa, remain relatively under-researched. Instead, most macro-evaluations of microfinance projects conducted throughout Africa have focused on, among other topics, impact assessment and client outreach, which generally have reported disappointing performance. The paper at hand contributes to previous research in that it seeks to promote greater understanding of the importance of loan officers through a case study of a failing MFI in Zambia. Continue Reading »

After entering into a joint venture with Indian real estate developer, DLF Group, Prudential Financial, a U.S.-based financial services company, is also eyeing business in India’s microfinance sector. Continue Reading »

A new microfinance institution in Salah ad Din, Iraq, established with the support of the IZDIHAR project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), kicked off its lending activities with thirteen loans totaling to USD 35,600. Continue Reading »

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a specialized agency of the United Nations, has announced that it will contribute a USD 35 million loan to a new microfinance program worth USD 46 million in Pakistan that aims to expand its microfinance services. Continue Reading »

By Brett E. Coleman, published by World Development, Vol. 34, No. 9, September 2006, 27 pages, available by subscription through Science Direct: doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2006.01.006.

This paper examines the results of a survey of two Northeast Thailand “village bank” programs that target the poor, and is an extension of a previous paper written by Coleman in 1999, entitled “The Impact of Group Lending in Northeast Thailand”^*. It extends the same methodology employed in the first to include more in-depth analyses on outreach success and differential impact on two types of village bank members. Coleman concludes that the programs surveyed were not reaching the poor as much as the relatively wealthy, and that the estimated impacts on wealthier committee members were significantly more positive than on poorer rank-and-file members. Continue Reading »

Palli Karma Sahayak Foundation (PKSF), a government funding agency for Bangladeshan NGOs, has directed 32 of its partners to undertake special actions for microcredit borrowers affected by the cyclone Sidr that hit southwestern Bangladesh. The cyclone survivors are maintaining contact with the rest of the country via mobile phones powered by solar panels, which have been provided by Bangladeshan non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and microfinance institutions (MFIs). Continue Reading »

Kenya Women Finance Trust (KWFT) has begun the conversion process into a commercial bank that is expected to be completed by the end of 2008. The conversion follows the footsteps of K-Rep Bank and Equity Bank, former Kenyan microfinance institutions that were transformed into commercial banks in 1999 and 2004, respectively. According to CEO Dr. Jennifer Riria, KWFT hopes to become a “one-stop-shop” financial institution that will offer savings accounts, in addition to loans. Continue Reading »

Jeffrey Sachs, considered one of the most influential economists of his time by Time magazine, gave a speech entitled “The Great Convergence: The Shifting Balance of Power in the 21^st Century”, which outlined The Gate Lecture, a presentation that he gave at Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). Continue Reading »

The 15^th annual Uniendo America Project Fair will be held from January 24 through 26 of 2008 in San Jose, Costa Rica. It will feature approximately 300 projects on microcredit, water, and education, among others, organized by Rotary Clubs throughout Central America. The fair is a way for Central American and North American Rotarians to exchange ideas and realize these projects. The chair of this year’s fair is Fabio Carballo, who is also vice-chair of Rotary International’s Microcredit Advisory Committee. Continue Reading »

World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU), supported by CO-OP Shared Branching’s technology and partners from Colorado and Ecuador, successfully launched the first international shared branching network in Quito, Ecuador. The new network, called COONECTA, connects credit union members via direct transaction capabilities in the United States and Ecuador, providing the more than 2 million Ecuadorians living and working in the United States with affordable access to their credit union accounts back home, as well as offering U.S. visitors to Ecuador the same convenience. Continue Reading »

ACCION International’s Gateway Microfinance Investment Vehicles Fund (GMIV) invested in Lok Capital, raising its total resources from USD 12 million to USD 14.5 million, and participated in the recapitalization of AfriCap Microfinance Investment Company, helping raise its total capital from USD 14 million to USD 50 million in its second round of investment. Continue Reading »

The Kenya Women Finance Trust (KWFT) officially launched Kinga Ya Jamii, a last-expense insurance product. Its primary purpose is to enable KWFT’s clients and their families to offset funeral expenses. Continue Reading »

Tunisian Solidarity Bank earned the “Microfinance Bank of the Year” during the 2007 African Banker Awards in Washington D.C. A total of 15 awards were distributed by African Banker magazine to acknowledge the emergence of an authentic banking system in Africa. Continue Reading »

SKS Microfinance Private Limited, an Indian microfinance institution (MFI) launched operations in Kerala, marking it as the fifteen state in which SKS is active. According to SKS Chief Operating Officer M.R. Rao, Kerala has been targeted on SKS’ growth map for a while because of the demographics of its inhabitants, who are largely dependent on fishery and handicrafts as primary sources of income in a state where 360,000 of 1,900,000 total poor households are headed by women. Continue Reading »