Zambia: Will it work?

In this thought-provoking essay, Chiara Chiumya outlines the new microfinance regulations released in Zambia in January 2006. Ms. Chiumya questions whether these regulations will actually help Zambia achieve its objectives of increasing outreach of financial services to the poor.

Ms. Chiumya, a supervisor at the Bank of Zambia, writes about the development of the regulations, including the goals stakeholders hoped to achieve by implementing regulatory reforms. The author offers her opinions on what the regulations will and will not achieve, including an analysis on whether the new regulatory reform will help the country to improve access to financial services among the poor.