In Haiti, microlender Fonkoze has increased its client base by 20 percent since a major earthquake struck the country in 2010. Fonkoze distributed USD 96 million in remittances in 2010; this was over 20 percent above the 2009 level and the most ever for the microlender.
When the earthquake struck Haiti, traditional banking services abruptly ceased. “ATMs [automated teller machines] don’t get refilled in disasters. . . . Access to cash is an overlooked aspect of relief,” Fonkoze’s director Carine Roenen was quoted as saying. Fonkoze provided infrastructure to get remittances to people in Haiti even as commercial banks remained closed for weeks. According to Roenen this service earned the institution “a lot of new clients.”
Based on the Grameen Bank’s village-banking model, Fonkoze created the Ti Kredi – little credit – program to assist Haitians with limited assets. Under the program, women in groups of five each receive an initial loan of USD 25, a savings account and insurance coverage. The women in the program must attend four training sessions ranging from business management to reading before receiving the loan. After six months the borrowers can graduate to loans of USD 75.
Fonkoze, which has both nonprofit and for-profit arms, reports total assets of HTG 1.35 billion (USD 33.9 million), a gross loan portfolio of HTG 462 million (USD 11.6 million), approximately 50,500 borrowers and 234,000 depositors.
By Courtney Snelling, Research Associate
About Fonkoze: Fonkoze was established in Haiti in 1994 with the mission of “building the economic foundations for democracy in Haiti by providing the rural poor with the tools they need to lift themselves out of poverty.” Fonkoze is comprised of three institutions: Fonkoze, Fonkoze Financial Services (FFS) and Fonkoze USA. Fonkoze is a nonprofit microfinance institution that opens and builds new branches. FFS is a commercial microfinance institution that expands the branches established by Fonkoze. Fonkoze USA channels financial and technical support to its Haitian partners. As of 2010, Fonkoze reported total assets of HTG 1.35 billion (USD 33.9 million), a gross loan portfolio of HTG 462 million (USD 11.6 million), approximately 50,500 borrowers and 234,000 depositors.
Sources and Additional Resources:
Good.is. “Haitian Bank Thrives After the Quake By Helping Poor,” January 19, 2012. http://www.good.is/post/a-haitian-bank-thrives-after-the-quake-by-helpin…
MicroCapital Universe Profile: Fonkoze, https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Fon…
MicroCapital.org article, November 30, 2011: “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Global Partnerships, Linked Foundation, Fonkoze Support Women’s Health in Haiti”, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-global-partnerships-linke…
MicroCapital.org article, September 26, 2011: “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Haitian Microfinance Institution Fonkoze Using Progress Out of Poverty Index to Monitor Economic Progress of Clients in Disaster Affected Areas”, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-haitian-microfinance-inst…
MicroCapital.org article, November 22, 2010: “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Haitian Microfinance Industry Still Struggling in Wake of Earthquake, Increased Regulation on the Horizon”, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-haitian-microfinance-indu…
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