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August 30, 2012
Bangladesh: Central Bank plans agent banking encouragement
To help the government of Bangladesh achieve its financial inclusion goals, Bangladesh Bank, the Central Bank of Bangladesh will be leveraging agent banking as a strategic tool for attaining sustainable growth. Read more here.
August 30, 2012
Ghana: Midland to deploy 300 ATMs and 5000 POS devices
Midland Savings & Loans Company Limited, a prominent name in Ghana’s microfinance sector will soon be adding to its operational number of branches by increasing its ATM numbers by 300 and POS (point of sale) devices by 5000, all across the country. Read more here.
August 30, 2012
IFC extends loans for microfinance in China
IFC (International Finance Corporation), a member of the World Bank group will be providing a loan of US$50 million to Fullerton Credit in China to expand its microfinance lending for small and medium enterprises in China’s underdeveloped central and eastern provinces. Read more here.
August 30, 2012
India: Indian Bank plans 1525 ultra-small branches
Indian Bank is planning to open as many as 1525 ultra-small branches across rural India. According to T. M. Bhasin, this is a part of the efforts of the bank trying to increase its presence in rural parts of India. Read more here.
August 30, 2012
Kiva, and microfinance and its potential in Sierra Leone
70 per cent of Sierra Leone lives below the poverty line, many of them pushed there due to the decade long civil war that persisted. MIX Market enlists about 33,000 borrowers in the country, out of a total population of about 5 million, and the country’s total loan portfolio stands […]
August 30, 2012
Kenya: MFI offers cheap microinsurance
SISDO microfinance, a microfinance company operational in Kenya is offering an inexpensive medical insurance package which covers a family of up to 5, giving them access to a comprehensive health cover. SISDO traditionally focuses on smallholder farmers and their irrigation needs, but in this venture is offering microinsurance at Sh […]
August 30, 2012
Zidisha microfinance – changing the way financial inclusion works
This post illustrates how the rationale for group borrowing, using exorbitant interest rates is outdated. According to a Centre for Financial Inclusion report, in a survey in Ghana, 18 per cent of borrowers reduced their food intake and 5 per cent pulled their kids out of school to be able […]
August 30, 2012
India: Rural indebtedness driven by multiple borrowing
According to a study conducted by NCAER Centre for Macro Consumer Research, ‘credit restraints’ lead to multiple borrowing from both formal and informal sectors, and this ends up becoming the primary driver for rural indebtedness. About 11 per cent of the borrowers had multiple loans, of which 21 per cent […]
August 30, 2012
Microfinance helps fight poverty in Northern Kordofan
In a report issued by the Northern Kordofan State, microfinance has spread to almost all localities of the state, and official figures indicate that it has benefited the lives of as many as 87,444 farmers, 62,679 men and 41,787 women involved in other vocations. Read more here.
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06 Key Lessons for informing policy decisions: Mainstreaming tribal-specific climate adaptive capacities in vulnerable coastal regions within National Action Plan on Climate Change
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Four Key Lessons for Policy Consideration: Scaling Climate Adaptive Capacities among Small and Marginal Farming Communities in the Sundarbans
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Five Key Lessons for Policy Consideration: Scaling Climate Action Programs for Landless Rural Communities in Semi-Arid Ganges-Brahmaputra Basin in South Asia
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View Blog Posts
GST 2.0 and Tax Cuts: Can They Make Growth Fairer and Greener?
India's latest GST reform, being termed as GST 2.0, is more than just slashing rates. By simplifying the tax structure, cutting levies on essentials, and supporting renewable infrastructure, it's open..
Reimagining Sports in CSR: From Tokenism to a Vehicle for Multiplying Impact
In 2023–24, Indian companies spent about ₹1,396 crore of their CSR budgets on sports — just 4% of the total ₹34,909 crore Indian corporates spent on CSR that year. Most of the rest went to edu..
Interactive SHG Map of India: 7.5 million Women Self Help Groups are spread across 27 States and 6 UTs in India
Under the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), India has 7.5 million Women Self Help Groups (SHGs) spread across 27 states and 6 Union Territories. Each of these small, self-governed, and peer-co..