VisionFund Uganda, a microfinance institution (MFI) subsidiary of VisionFund International, recently conducted a survey on the impacts of COVID-19 on refugee and host-community savings groups. The 417 respondents are members of savings groups in the Yumbe and Obongi districts of Uganda, to which many refugees from South Sudan have relocated. The results are divided into the effects of the pandemic on savings groups, households and businesses.
(1) The results indicated that 81 percent of savings groups are still meeting, and the primary strategy for savings groups (65 percent) is to do so in-person, albeit in smaller sub-groups. Whereas 24 percent of host-community groups stopped saving, only 2 percent of refugee groups stopped saving.
(2) Of the respondents, 88 percent cited increasing food prices as a pressure on household budgets. Ninety-two percent experienced “financial stress” due to food insecurity, challenges in saving, lower incomes and loss of business. In spite of this, 87 percent of households did not resort to selling assets, and 58 percent did not report their savings groups’ social funds getting more requests than before the pandemic.
(3) In terms of group members’ businesses, 93 percent reported “some level of reduced income,” and 6 percent reported an increase in income. Of the total, 47 percent reported “a big reduction in income,” and 11 percent reported “a complete stop to income.”
VisionFund Uganda was established in 1996 and has 26 office locations. It offers loans for purposes such as agriculture, education and water and sanitation. The MFI is also piloting a loan program for savings groups of refugees from South Sudan and members of host communities in the West Nile region of Uganda. VisionFund Uganda reports a portfolio of UGX 2.2 billion (USD 600,000) and serves 40,900 clients as of 2020.
VisionFund International operates in 28 countries with total assets of USD 688 million and a gross loan portfolio of USD 434 million outstanding to 1.1 million borrowers as of 2019. Most of these borrowers are women, and about a third are farmers. In addition to loans, the organization provides savings products, insurance services, financial education and business skills training. VisionFund International’s parent organization, World Vision, is a US-based Christian relief and development organization that recorded revenue of USD 1.1 billion during 2019.
By Jessica McLeod, Research Associate
Sources and Additional Resources
VisionFund story
https://www.visionfund.org/stories/impact-covid-19-refugee-saving-groups-uganda
VisionFund homepage
https://www.visionfund.org/
VisionFund’s Refugee Microfinance programme in Uganda
https://www.visionfund.org/our-focus/fragile/uganda-pilot
VisionFund Uganda webpage
https://www.visionfund.org/where-we-work/africa/uganda
VisionFund International Annual Report 2019
https://www.visionfund.org/sites/default/files/2020-03/VFI%27s%20AR-FY19-FINAL_0.pdf
Previous MicroCapital article on VisionFund
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-visionfund-uganda-opening-branches-to-deliver-microfinance-to-refugees-from-south-sudan/
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