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Happy World Savings Day! October 31 is World Savings Day. To celebrate, we're highlighting some of our favorite resources on savings.
I recently came across a great comic strip in “Finance Inclusive,” a magazine about microfinance in Africa. The message: a large savings base has helped many microfinance institutions (MFIs) weather the storm of the financial crisis. As the comic demonstrates, savings provide MFIs with an inexpensive, and relatively stable, source of funds. Yet there are many more reasons that savings play an important role in financial inclusion.
For poor families, income is often highly unpredictable. An individual might earn $3 one day, but nothing the next. Savings can help smooth these sorts of unpredictable income flows, providing a safe place to store cash influxes and a cushion to turn to when needed. Savings can also help mitigate shocks, such as illness or death. Without savings, an individual may borrow to cover the cost of a shock. But if they had some savings, the cost of taking a loan may be avoided. Finally, savings can also provide capital to invest in income-generating activities without having to pay interest on a loan to do the same. While microcredit often gets more attention than savings, there is renewed interest in promoting savings as a tool to help poor people manage their financial lives. Several recent research studies report the positive power of savings. And some high-profile events, including the Global Savings Forum, hosted by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Arusha Savings Groups Summit. In celebration of World Savings Day, the Microfinance Gateway compiled a sampling of savings-related resources. Read more recommended reading in our Savings Hot Topic and a newly released CGAP publication, “Advancing Savings Services: Resource Guide for Funders." We also invite you to share your favorite savings-related resources.
- Lauren Braniff, Microfinance Gateway Editor ***************
Arusha Savings Groups Summit - The Summit took place October 4-6, 2011. The site includes a wiki with resources related to Savings Groups. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation - Global Savings Forum 2010 - The event took place November 16-17, 2010. The site contains a number of links to research papers and videos highlighting the value of savings. CGAP Microfinance Blog: Savings Series - The series took place between April and September 2011. The twelve posts featured diverse perspectives and covered a range of topics related to savings. Gateway Financial Innovations for Savings (GAFIS) - A research initiative to better understand the needs of poor customers and design products accordingly. Portfolios of the Poor: Four-Part Video Series with Stuart Rutherford - Watch this video series to hear one of the authors of Portfolios of the Poor discuss the research. More videos available by Microfinance Podcast. "Savings and the poor: A better mattress" - Economist (March 11, 2010) - Overview article on savings and poor people, and the potential of technology to make savings services more accessible and less expensive. Savings Revolution - Devoted to developing and sharing information about Savings Groups. SEEP's Savings Led Financial Services Working Group - The initiative brings together practitioners working with savings groups to share knowledge and disseminate learning. SPINNAKER Network - An online platform to aggregate data, research, and analysis on savings products for the poor.
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Posted: 31 Oct 2011 Related Documents: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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