MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Alleviating Poverty via Mobile Communications; Integrating Microfinance, Health Services in the Andes; Mobile Phone Technology for Women in Afghanistan

Alleviating Poverty: Mobile Communications, Microfinance and Small Business Development Around the World;” by Darrell M. West; published by The Brookings Institution; May 2013; 12 pages; available at: http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/papers/2013/05/16%20poverty%20mobile%20microfinance%20business%20west/westalleviating%20povertymobile%20comms%20microfinance%20small%20business51613v12.pdf

This document examines the enhancement of entrepreneurship and small business development resulting from the expansion of mobile devices in the developing world. The author notes that “people can use handheld devices to make monetary transfers, arrange for microfinance loans, establish small enterprises, and improve their economic circumstances,” helping to alleviate poverty. Mobile money, which “refers to payment services performed on a handheld device,” allows consumers and businesses access to financial services even in areas that lack financial institution branches. “The number of mobile subscribers around the globe has risen dramatically,” from 2.3 billion to 3.4 billion between 2008 and 2013, and is expected to rise to approximately 3.9 billion by 2017. As East Africa accounts for 80 percent of global mobile money transfers, the author highlights Kenya’s M-Pesa, which “has attracted widespread support and enables consumers to complete financial transactions outside of traditional banks.” But despite the advancements of mobile money services, the author notes that there are “many barriers to economic progress in the developing world,” including corruption, poor infrastructure, limited transparency, weak financial institutions and the low percentage of women with access to mobile technology. While females in the developing world are “21 percent less likely to own a mobile phone than a man,” enhanced access to mobile money services would offer women the potential for lower interest rates on loans, greater loan access and greater opportunities for entrepreneurship and business development. The report concludes that while many developing countries suffer from deficient financial institutions and limited access to capital, “combining proper access to capital and mobile technology to break down barriers, entrepreneurs and established businesses will [find] new ways to enhance global economic growth.”

Integrated Health and Microfinance: Harnessing the Strengths of Two Sectors to Improve Health and Alleviate Poverty in the Andes;” by Andrea del Granado, Lisa Kuhn Fraioli, Marcia Metclafe and Anna Awimbo; published by the Center for Health and Market Innovations, Freedom from Hunger and the Microcredit Summit Campaign; 2012; 20 pages; available at: http://www.microcreditsummit.org/uploads/resource/document/ffh_andesreport_eng_web_28410.pdf

This report summarizes findings and lessons learned in the Andean region of Latin America since September 2011, when Freedom from Hunger, a US-based NGO, and the Center for Health Market Innovations, a US-based program run by the nonprofit Results for Development Institute (R4D) began integrating health and microfinance services in the region. The objectives of the project were to: (1) develop and strengthen integration models for microfinance and health interventions; (2) advocate among donors and other entities for the integration of these two services; (3) establish models for the evaluation and monitoring of such integration; and (4) disseminate and promote successful models, practices, results and recommendations. The document reviews the health and microfinance services available in Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru as well as profiling some of the organizations offering both services. The report concludes that the integration of these two services “shows enormous potential for reducing the vulnerability of the poor in the Andean region” but identifies as a major challenge both the physical and cultural distance between urban and the rural populations. The authors suggest that more programs combining health and microfinance be implemented and studied in order to further understand which types are most successful.

Connecting to Opportunity: A Survey of Afghan Women’s Access to Mobile Technology;” published by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID); May 2013; 15 pages; available at: http://afghanistan.usaid.gov/documents/document/Document/2894/A_Survey_of_Afghan_Womens_Access_to_Mobile_Technology_English

This report summarizes the findings of a study performed by the nonprofit Afghan Women’s Capacity Building Organization on how mobile phone technology impacts women in the country. According to the study, approximately 80 percent of Afghan women have regular access to a mobile phone. The study also finds that fear of technology is not a barrier, as 94 percent of women without a phone say the reason they don’t have one is not related to being intimidated by technology. The primary reservations of women without phones are the cost and “infringement on personal privacy.” According to the study, one fourth of women with a mobile phone use it to access commercial and social services including those related to health and education. The study suggests developing voice-based, value-added services for women who may be illiterate and unable to read short message service (SMS) text messages.

By Sam Allmendinger and Charlotte Newman, Research Associates

About Freedom from Hunger
Freedom from Hunger is based in the US city of Davis, California. Formerly called “Meals for Millions,” it is an NGO that operates in 19 countries with the aim of alleviating hunger and poverty. Its microfinance programs service approximately 2 million families through 26 partner microfinance institutions. At the end of 2012, Freedom from Hunger was working with a total of 150 partners in 24 reaching approximately 5.1 million women plus their families.

About the US Agency for International Development (USAID)
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is a government agency that provides international economic and humanitarian assistance. It focuses on areas such as economic growth, agriculture, trade, health, democracy, conflict prevention and humanitarian assistance. Under the Development Credit Authority (DCA), it provides credit guarantees that cover up to 50 percent of defaults on wholesale loans made by private financial institutions to institutions that lend on a retail basis to under-served borrowers. USAID had a total of USD 51.6 billion in budgetary resources in 2012.

Sources and Additional Resources:

“Alleviating Poverty: Mobile Communications, Microfinance and Small Business Development Around the World,”
http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/papers/2013/05/16%20poverty%20mobile%20microfinance%20business%20west/westalleviating%20povertymobile%20comms%20microfinance%20small%20business51613v12.pdf

“Integrated Health and Microfinance: Harnessing the Strengths of Two Sectors to Improve Health and Alleviate Poverty in the Andes,” http://www.microcreditsummit.org/uploads/resource/document/ffh_andesreport_eng_web_28410.pdf

“Connecting to Opportunity: A Survey of Afghan Women’s Access to Mobile Technology,” http://afghanistan.usaid.gov/documents/document/Document/2894/A_Survey_of_Afghan_Womens_Access_to_Mobile_Technology_English

MicroCapital. January 27, 2013, “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Rejecting Kenya’s M-Pesa Model, Central Bank of Nigeria Bars Telecommunications Companies from Becoming Licensed Mobile Money Operators,” https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-rejecting-kenyas-m-pesa-model-central-bank-of-nigeria-bars-telecommunications-companies-from-becoming-licensed-mobile-money-operators/

MicroCapital. May 24, 2013, “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agricultural Mobile Applications in Kenya Increase Market Information for Farmers,” https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-agricultural-mobile-applications-in-kenya-increase-market-information-for-farmers/

MicroCapital Universe Profile: Freedom from Hunger
http://microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=freedom+from+hunger

MicroCapital Universe Profile: USAID
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=United+States+Agency+for+International+Development+%28USAID%29

Do you know that MicroCapital publishes the MicroCapital Monitor newspaper each month? Find out more at https://www.microcapital.org/products-page/

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