The authors of this study conducted a client-level analysis to examine differences in the investment behavior of female and male microcredit users in Kenya. The scope included
Tag: microfinance
MICROFINANCE EVENT: AEMFI 25th Anniversary; November 28 – December 1, 2023; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Themed, “MFIs in a Digital Era: Financial Inclusion for Job Creation and Women Empowerment,” this event offers microfinance institutions multiple opportunities to showcase their products and how they can contribute to reducing poverty. Researchers will also present their findings, and funders and government representatives will attend to collaborate on strategies for growing the industry. The event, whose primary organizer is the 50-member Association of Ethiopian Microfinance Institutions (AEMFI), event is
SPECIAL REPORT: Leveraging Financial Inclusion to Get Food Security Back on the Increase #EMW2023
Global food security had been increasing before the COVID-19 pandemic and the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. People with low incomes were becoming more able to access – both in terms of cost and distance – a range of foods such as grains and fresh produce on a year-round basis. However, during the first year of COVID-19, 47 million women fell into extreme poverty, reducing their – and their children’s – access to
SPECIAL REPORT: Yikri of Burkina Faso Wins $110k European Microfinance Award for Progress Toward Food Security #EMW2023
From the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP): Yikri wins European Microfinance Award 2023 for its commitment to addressing the complex challenges of food security and nutrition in Burkina Faso.
This report is part of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Loans $21m to BMCI of Morocco as Part of Women in Business (WiB) Program
The multilateral European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently agreed to loan up to MAD 220 million (USD 21.5 million) to Banque Marocaine pour le Commerce et l’Industrie (BMCI) in support of the Women in Business (WiB) program, through which EBRD serves women-led micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs)
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Whole Planet Foundation Offering Interest-free Wholesale Funding for Microfinance in Latin America, Caribbean
As a part of its goal to reach 300,000 “microentrepreneurs, smallholder farmers, and [members of] vulnerable populations,” the US-based Whole Planet Foundation is accepting applications for loans and grants from “socially-focused microfinance institutions, social enterprises, nonprofit organizations and cooperatives” that provide microloans and related services.
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Livelihoods India Summit; January 17-18, 2024; New Delhi, India
The goal of this event is “to facilitate a dialogue on impacting livelihoods of the poor.” The discussion topics will include value chains,
SPECIAL REPORT: Small Business Diaries Benefit Entrepreneurs, Microfinance Institutions #EMW2023
The Financial Access Initiative (FAI) at New York University recently completed a study spanning seven countries, collecting data from firms with up to 20 paid employees. Researchers visited hundreds of these companies every few weeks for one year to support them in completing diaries of their financial lives. Among the takeaways are that the owners of the firms want to maintain stability and grow at a moderate pace and that they are most in need of
SPECIAL REPORT: The Business Case for Education Finance #EMW2023
Many families in low- and middle-income countries send their kids to low-cost private schools because the government is not meeting the need. However, many of these schools are not registered as businesses and don’t keep good records, so it is hard for them to borrow from banks to improve their facilities. Meanwhile, about one in five school-aged children – 260 million worldwide – are not in school.
Varthana is a lender in India that specializes helping schools expand. Its loans are often in the range of USD 20,000 to USD 100,000. The firm has developed a track record and so now is able to
SPECIAL REPORT: Digitizing Microfinance to Meet Customer Needs via an Incremental Approach #EMW2023
At today’s European Microfinance Week panel on transforming microfinance institutions (MFIs) into digital financial services providers, the focus was on meeting customer needs – not just implementing digital products, but attaining measurable success for clients and MFIs. Given that 80 percent of many microfinance portfolios comprises renewals, the renewal of microloans is a great process to digitize. This can free up staff to focus on recruiting new clients.
The consensus of the panelists was that going digital cannot be addressed primarily as a technology problem; rather it must be looked at as a business problem. The Vitas Group of Middle Eastern MFIs made the conscious choice to build a parallel system rather than
SPECIAL REPORT: Green Action Group Celebrates 10th Anniversary at European Microfinance Week #EMW2023
Today’s opening plenary of European Microfinance Week included a celebration of the accomplishments of the European Microfinance Platform’s (e-MFP’s) Green Inclusive & Climate Smart Finance Action Group. The group has grown to 150 people and still is accepting new members.
One of the main outputs of the group is the Green Index, which helps financial services providers (FSPs) evaluate their performance in terms of green inclusive finance. The Action Group introduced the index in 2014 and most recently updated it in 2022. One of the group’s most recent outputs is the
SPECIAL REPORT: European Microfinance Week 2023 Opens With Action Group Meetings, Including Investors Sharing Strategies for Measuring Social Performance #EMW2023
The first day of European Microfinance Week 2023 began this morning with meetings of several of the European Microfinance Platform’s (e-MFP’s) Action Groups. At the Investors Action Group session, Cécile Lapenu of CERISE discussed the recent increase in demand for accountability regarding claims of positive client impact. What really makes an investor an impact investor? How can we measure impact in a way that is convincing and also efficient?
The recently published 60 Decibels Microfinance Index 2023 addresses some of these questions. The study, which is based on a survey of 32,000 microfinance clients in 32 countries, indicates that access to financial and non-financial services other than credit leads to deeper impact. Regarding credit services, group lending is associated with
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Liberation Community Finance Expanding Branch Network, Product Lineup for Farmers, Women, Youth in Uganda
Liberation Community Finance (LCF), a microfinance institution (MFI) in Uganda, has several new initiatives:
– a partnership with Uganda’s Agricultural Business Initiative (aBi) to develop environmentally sensitive financial products for LCF’s clients who farm crops such as maize and pumpkins;
– a Women Commander model through which women who borrow in groups can earn commissions for monitoring loan repayments and recruiting additional borrowers; and
– a partnership with Uganda’s
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: UNI2 Microcrédito of Colombia Raises $3m in Debt from Triodos Microfinance Fund, Triodos Fair Share Fund
Netherlands-based Triodos Investment Management recently disbursed a total of USD 3 million from its Triodos Microfinance Fund and Triodos Fair Share Fund to UNI2 Microcrédito, a Colombian microfinance institution (MFI), to support the growth of the MFI’s loan portfolio. Established in 2014, UNI2 provides microcredit for purposes such as
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Banco de Credito del Peru (BCP) Launches iO Banking App with Support from i2C
With the goal of encouraging digital banking and boosting financial inclusion, Banco de Credito del Peru (BCP) recently collaborated with US-based payment software company i2C Incorporated to launch the iO app, which is available on the App Store and Google Play. The app’s offerings include: (1) conventional and virtual credit cards branded by US-based Visa Incorporated;
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ABI to Leverage $69m from EIB to Boost SME, Mid-cap Financing in West Africa – Focusing on Women, Youth
Atlantic Business International (ABI), a holding company owned by the Morocco-based Banque Centrale Populaire (BCP) Group, recently entered an agreement with the EU’s European Investment Bank (EIB) whereby EIB will fund half of EUR 130 million (USD 138 million) in funding to be distributed via ABI’s Banque Atlantique institutions in Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal. The funds are to be directed to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-caps with the goal of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institution PEBCo-Bethesda of Benin Borrows $2m from Incofin via Agricultural Liquidity Fund
Incofin, a Belgium-based investor, recently disbursed a loan of EUR 2 million (USD 2.1 million) to PEBCo-Bethesda, a microfinance institution in Benin, from the Agricultural Liquidity Fund (ALF).
SPECIAL REPORT: Inclusivity in Capital Markets Demands Sustainability Reporting
Sustainability reporting entails assessing, disclosing and managing an organization’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) impacts. This practice communicates to investors, customers, employees and regulators that the organization is committed to sustainability. The disclosure element, in particular, conveys values, strategies, risks, opportunities, accountability and transparency.
The significance of sustainability reporting within capital markets is increasing steadily, as more investors