Grameen Foundation : Resource Center : Print Newsletter : Winter 2004 : Making Connections, Sharing Knowledge
Making Connections, Sharing Knowledge
By facilitating exchange trips and knowledge-sharing among its network of microfinance institutions (MFIs),Grameen Foundation USA (GFUSA) is able to leverage the years of practical experience of leading institutions like the Grameen Bank, as well as its own investments in more established programs. This enables Grameen-based institutions around the world to undertake growth with speed and efficiency and to reach greater numbers of poor faster than ever. The article below describes two recent GFUSA-facilitated exchange trips.
At the center of a diverse network of non-profit and non-governmental organizations, for-profit companies, international financial institutions, and MFIs of varying size, age and location, GFUSA is in a unique position to connect people and programs that serve the poorest with the resources they need to be effective. Often more established microfinance providers can play a mentoring role to younger institutions that are attempting to bring their operations to scale.
With more than a quarter century of microlending experience, the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh has served as a model and inspiration for MFIs around the world. Recently, representatives of four non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from the Dominican Republic (DR) – MUDE, Esperanza Internacional, CDD and ECLOF Dominicana – traveled to Bangladesh for first-hand exposure to the Grameen microfinance methodology. The trip, led by GFUSA country representative Andrea Findley, was part of GFUSA’s effort to enable promising Dominican NGOs to scale-up their microfinance operations. “The value of this trip was immeasurable,” said Andrea. “We were able to connect NGO leaders from the DR with the knowledgeable staff of the Grameen Bank. Each of us learned more about how to sustainably scale-up a microfinance program while integrating a social empowerment agenda into our operations.”
Through a market survey conducted in late 2002, GFUSA determined that roughly 52% of DR households live in poverty and nearly 15% live in extreme poverty. Sixty-percent of the poorest households are in rural areas. Though microfinance exists in the DR, lending to the very poor, particularly in rural areas, is rare. Recognizing the need for poverty-focused microfinance, GFUSA, in partnership with the Banco de Reservas de la Republica Dominicana (BRRD), has begun to equip three NGOs (MUDE, Esperanza Internacional and ECLOF Dominicana) with the technical capacity to increase their microlending outreach. BRRD is providing approximately $8 million in financing and $550,000 for intensive technical assistance. Shah Newaz, Deputy General Manager and Chief of the International Program Department at Grameen Bank, has been recruited to provide on-site consulting for 18 months as the project's senior technical advisor.
These MFIs are not the first to gain from this kind of knowledge-exchange facilitated by GFUSA. When the Lift Above Poverty Organization (LAPO), a GFUSA partner in Nigeria, began to explore the process of becoming a regulated financial institution, GFUSA sent Godwin Ehigiamusoe, the Founder and Executive Director of LAPO, along with Osadebamwen Elijah, the Manager of Operations, to visit CASHPOR Financial and Technical Services (CFTS) and SHARE Microfin Ltd. in India. CFTS and SHARE are GFUSA partners that have been transitioning into regulated institutions over the last year. The trip was financed through a $1.3 million grant from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to facilitate LAPO's expansion to 53,000 borrowers by 2005.
Combined with financial support and on-going technical assistance, training trips facilitated by GFUSA will help LAPO, MUDE, Esperanza Internacional and ECLOF Dominicana achieve their outreach goals and change the lives of thousands now living in poverty.
Grameen Foundation : Resource Center : Print Newsletter : Winter 2004 : Making Connections, Sharing Knowledge
Grameen Foundation uses microfinance and innovative technology to fight global poverty and bring opportunities to the world's poorest people. With tiny loans and financial services, we help the poor, mostly women, start businesses and escape poverty. Our global network of 55 microfinance institution (MFI) partners including our Growth Guarantee partners has touched more than 34 million people in 24 countries. In addition, we introduced and now sustain technology initiatives (Mifos and Village Phone) in Cameroon, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda, bringing our total country outreach to 28.
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