MFI Experiences
Many MFIs of course do not engage in any explicit targeting
of clients. They feel that they are filling an important space in the
financial sector by providing services to those who have no access to
institutional financial sources. It is more important for such MFIs to
be ensuring quality financial services through sustainable institutions
to the excluded population as a whole rather than ensuring that specific
vulnerable groups are being brought in. Smaller loan amounts, higher interest
rates, higher transactions costs due to loan repayment conditionalities
of MFIs ensure that the better off do not seek MFI services.
Those who are more poverty focused, however, do explicitly
target to ensure that very poor people and vulnerable groups are being
reached. They rely on different tools and methodologies, and have varied
experiences with targeting. This section details such experiences. This
sharing of experiences, of successes, of difficulties, of problems encountered,
will hopefully lead to increasing the number of very poor accessing financial
services.
Also read Interviews
with two professionals in the field, John de Wit, (from SEF) and David
Gibbons (from CASHPOR).
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Documents