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May 2013
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Archives:
Health and Microfinance: Strengths in the Andes
May, 31 2013
South America - The integration of microfinance and health shows enormous potential to reduce the vulnerability of the poor in the Andean region of South America ...
New Research Indicates Microloans Don’t Solve Poverty
May, 30 2013
India - The authors note that researchers haven’t reached a consensus about the effects of microfinance ...
Philippines: New Law Allows Foreigners to Own 60% of Rural Banks
May, 30 2013
Philippines - President Aquino has signed a law allowing foreigners to own up to 60 percent of voting stocks in rural banks ...
How Can Financial Services Work Best for the Poor?
May, 28 2013
Global - Financial services can help transform livelihoods and economies in developing countries. Our panel offers 10 points key to reaching universal financial inclusion ...
Deb Levine, ISIS: Mobile Phones and Mothers - A Direct Line to Health?
May, 28 2013
Global - While it may not seem obvious at first glance how mobile phones will improve global maternal health, if we follow the path of mobile microfinance, the potential is vast. ...
Why Does Kenya Lead the World in Mobile Money?
May, 27 2013
Kenya - Some of the factors behind Kenya's lead cannot be copied; but many of them can, which means it should eventually be possible for other countries to follow Kenya's pioneering example ...
Smart Campaign Shaping the Landscape of Microfinance in Bosnia and Herzegovina
May, 24 2013
Bosnia and Herzegovina - Having three of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s MFIs certified is a great start, but as with all good deeds, there’s a component to consider that’s almost as important as the deed itself: Does anyone actually know about this? Do current and prospective Bosnian MFI clients know about and understand certification ...
Muhammad Yunus: 'Business is a Beautiful Mechanism to Solve Problems'
May, 24 2013
London - Grameen Bank founder is a microfinance pioneer, but are his plans for alleviating poverty a little too good to be true ...
EBRD Allocates $10 Million Loan to Support Kazakhstan Farmers
May, 24 2013
Kazakhstan - To increase access to credit for small farmers and entrepreneurs in remote areas of Kazakhstan, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is now lending the local currency equivalent of $10 million to KazMicroFinance (KMF), the largest non-banking microfinance institution in the country ...
Araujo, Navajas, Mazer, Faz: Consumer Lending and Financial Inclusion in Latin America
May, 23 2013
Latin America - The economic success of many Latin American countries and the rise out of poverty of millions of households in recent years has led to a strong growth in consumer lending in low and middle-class segments ...
India: Savings Crisis in West Bengal
May, 21 2013
India - The crisis in West Bengal should offer a reminder that regulations exist for a reason; they’re not just red-tape and bureaucratic rent-seeking. Protecting the assets of the poor is a good and necessary policy goal. ...
India: Microfinance Borrowers Move Apex Court Against High Court Order
May, 21 2013
India - A group of borrowers has challenged in the Supreme Court an order by the Andhra Pradesh high court asking the state government to review a law that reined in lending by microfinance institutions (MFIs). ...
Measuring The Risks of Microfinance Institutions
May, 21 2013
Vietnam - On May 16, International Finance Corporation (IFC), Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and Vietnam Microfinance Working Group (MFWG) held a conference to set up sustainable interest rate and risk management in microfinance ...
Asian Migrants Send $260 Bln Home But High Fees, Poor Services Reduce Impact - Report
May, 20 2013
Asia - Asian migrants sent $260 billion home to their families in 2012 but high fees and a lack of services outside urban areas mean the impact of the money on millions of rural poor is limited, said a new report ...
Financial Inclusion in Europe and Central Asia
May, 20 2013
Europe and Central Asia - The countries of Europe and Central Asia have made undeniable, if uneven, progress in expanding financial inclusion in recent years ...
Microfinance in Madagascar Helps Small Businesses Buck The System
May, 18 2013
Madagascar - Borrowers get business advice and a buffer against disaster from growing microcredit sector in cyclone-prone Madagascar ...
Alleviating Poverty: Mobile Communications, Microfinance and Small Business Development Around The World
May, 16 2013
Global - Yet with the growth of mobile technology, there are new opportunities for individuals and small businesses to lift themselves up. ...
Mexico: Put to The Test
May, 16 2013
Mexico - Overall, the studies show that microcredit, even the for-profit kind, typically benefits borrowers in a variety of ways, even if it does not lift them immediately out of poverty ...
Luxembourg: Responsible Investing Needs to Move to Mainstream - Alfi Survey
May, 15 2013
Luxembourg - Between 2010 and 2012 Microfinance funds continued to grow both in number of funds and AUM (growth of 26%). ...
IFC Promotes Mobile Finance in Ivory Coast
May, 15 2013
Ivory Coast - The International Finance Corporation (IFC), in partnership with the MasterCard Foundation, has assembled financial players to build further momentum for mobile financial services in Ivory Coast ...
Solomon Islands: Financial Inclusion Activities Saw Mix Results
May, 14 2013
Solomon Islands - The 2012 Central Bank annual report revealed that last year has seen mixed results in the development and promotion of Financial Inclusion activities in the country ...
India: Return of The Moneylender
May, 12 2013
India - The return of the moneylender in rural India can broadly be explained by the failure of the formal banking system to reach out to more people, the utter failure of institutions like the regional rural banks and the recent implosion of microfinance ...
Inclusive Finance and Segmenting Smallholder Farmers
May, 09 2013
Global - An estimated 500 million smallholder farmers live in low- and middle-income countries. Despite some improvements to their access to broad financial services, relatively little progress has been made to advance services that cater specifically to their agricultural activities ...
Ghana: Venture Capital Trust Fund Signs MoU with GIMPA to Establish Centre
May, 09 2013
Ghana - Venture Capital Trust Fund (VCTF) on Wednesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ghana Institute for Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) to establish a Centre for Impact Investing in the country. ...
Nigeria: Giving Microfinance Banking a Facelift
May, 08 2013
Nigeria - The author, Obinna Chima, examines efforts by operators of microfinance banks to comply with the revised microfinance policy framework. ...
India: Now, a Regulatory Body to Set Norms for Impact Investment
May, 08 2013
India - In order to avoid excesses of the kind that derailed the Indian microfinance industry three years ago, nine entities doing 'impact investing' have come together to form a grouping that will define what they can do and cannot do in their investment practices to always stay aligned with their stated objectives. ...
Grameen Foundation Taps Microfinance and Technology to Battle Poverty
May, 07 2013
Global - MFIs can show more modesty by reducing huge pay packages and stock options. Humility is needed to realise that microfinance is just another anti-poverty intervention ...
Live Chat: Can The Poor Bank on Financial Services?
May, 07 2013
Global - What are the best ways to provide access to financial services that can reduce income inequality and increase economic growth ...
Microfinance Institutions Study Issue of Entering into Credit Bureau in Azerbaijan
May, 07 2013
Azerbaijan - Microfinance institutions (MFIs) of Azerbaijan have returned to the idea of entering into the first credit bureau, being created in Azerbaijan ...
A Microlender Backs Startups to Bring More Than Loans to the Poor
May, 07 2013
Global - Investors are moving beyond microfinance to offer a broader range of financial products for the developing world. ...
Microfinance Needs Better Policies to Safeguard the Environment
May, 06 2013
Global - When it comes to policies that govern the behaviour of microfinance institutions in their interaction with the environment, so far the only ones that exist are voluntary and internal. ...
Belarus’ National Bank Makes Maya Declaration Commitment
May, 06 2013
Belarus - The National Bank and the Alliance for Financial Inclusion teamed up to conduct two national surveys on the access of the population and small businesses to financial services ...
Ghana: BOG Gives License to 171 Financial Institutions
May, 03 2013
Ghana - Head of Micro-finance and Banking Supervision at the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr. Yaw Gyima-Larbi has revealed that 171 financial institutions have been issued with final license to legally operate in the country ...
MSMEs: Big Opportunity In Small Lending
May, 03 2013
Global - There is significant evidence that Micro,Small and Medium sized Enterprises (MSMEs) in emerging markets have insufficient access to finance. ...
Re-evaluating Impact Evaluation: Why Solely Focusing on Financials is Flawed and Other Key Points From a Recent Workshop
May, 02 2013
Global - In such a resource-constrained environment, it is not surprising that funders and investors are demanding evidence of impact to guide investment decisions and help them allocate limited capital to the most effective programs ...

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