Mbunya Francis Nkemnyi January 15, 2021

Exchange for Change; RCESD Capacity Building Strategy on Micro Finance Model

Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Give a woman a micro-credit and she, her husband, her children, and her extended family will eat for a life time” BONO

In an interview with one of the participants who review that ‘the best way to help women is not by giving them money but is by helping them choose what is best for them, integrating them to save and have their own money and ownership of it. Thereby collaborating and not imposing on them

Many people attribute different understandings to the word microfinance. Community based microfinance models, owned and governed by community members are indispensable for deeper financial inclusions. Models such as Village Savings and    Loan Associations (VSLA), Self Help Groups (SHGs), Financial Cooperatives and Credit Unions not only provide financial services but also create community based ownership and collective empowerment.

The Program Development Director of Resource Center for Environment and sustainable Development (RCESD) Fombu Christel, participated in a training course “Community Based Microfinance” which took place at Addis Ababa in Ethiopia organized by the Coady International Institute found in Canada. It is an organization aimed at empowering women on Microfinance schemes.

The participants for that event were those from the Non-profit world, Financial Regulators and the Micro Finance Institution (MFI). These participants explored how the models support women empowerment, agriculture, livelihoods and value chains and enterprises in rural and urban communities and how innovative links with banks and mobile payment systems can reach the million that are outside formal banking system.

 By Nah Genevieve