villagefinance

A member-based perspective on Village Finance.

SMDP Tanzania 2011, scheduled to take place in Arusha from Oct 10-14, is a program uniquely designed for village finance practitioners. A basic banking rule of thumb is that there are 4 savers for every one borrower — with enough demand for savings to finance that borrower. SMDP Tanzania is the first program to truly embrace the needs of poor savers!

My colleagues at SMDP will cover VSL from a technical perspective. The course on ‘Village Finance’ will inject a fresh, field-based and member-based perspective on program design and strategy — placing financial inclusion and institutional sustainability front and centre. The course is organized around field work — ‘oral’ information systems that illiterate and innumerate members can understand; a rapid, effective audit tool that a person with 8 years of school can apply; and a powerful conceptual framework — grounded in transaction cost economics — for strengthening group govenance.

‘Village Finance’ compares VSL with other financial intermediaries, such as SHGs, ASCAs and financial cooperatives. What can these approaches learn from each other? Can they be linked or networked? Can we succeed in the so-called ‘dead zone’ between a tiny group and a large institution — and if so, how? What does global experience tell us about the future of program design?

If you are preparing to design a village finance program, or thinking about how to make an existing one more inclusive or sustainable, more information on the SMDP program is available at SMDP Tanzania 2011.

Get ready for the next level of practice!