MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Microfinance Barometer 2019,” Published by Convergences

Published by Convergences in partnership with the Advans Group, BNP Paribas, the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP) and the Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation; October 2019; 16 pages; available at http://www.convergences.org/en/104906-2/

This tenth edition of the “Microfinance Barometer” offers insights into the microfinance sector garnered through interviews, case studies and a review of data from the Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX). The publication explores trends in the sector over the last ten years, as well as projections of how microfinance may evolve in the future. The authors cite statistics from the MIX Market database indicating that participating microfinance institutions increased their customer base from 98 million borrowers in one year in 2009 to 140 million borrowers in one year in 2018.

The interviews and case studies offer examples of how financial service providers can adapt their services and products to improve services for refugee populations, how microfinance can be adapted to help build resilience against risks related to climate change, how the sector is being impacted by digitalisation, and the extent to which the sector has contributed towards financial inclusion.

Although the publication documents progress made in the sector has made over the last ten years, it also provides a critical look at the limitations of microfinance for creating social impact. This echoes a sentiment expressed by Alix Pinel in 2010, a journalist at Mediapart, that “Microfinance is not a universal solution for the development sector, it is not on its own a miracle answer. [That said, it] can usefully link up with other development policies and further increase its contribution to the fight against poverty.”

By Jolene Khor, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

Convergences publication
http://www.convergences.org/en/104906-2/

Converges homepage
http://www.convergences.org

BNP Paribas homepage
https://group.bnpparibas

European Microfinance Platform homepage
http://www.e-mfp.eu/

Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation homepage
http://gca-foundation.org/

MIX Market webpage
http://www.themix.org/mixmarket

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