Download Free Transforming Microfinance Institutions In The Arab World Book in PDF and EPUB Free Download. You can read online Transforming Microfinance Institutions In The Arab World and write the review.

Transformations in the microfinance industry have been widespread practice globally since the late 1990s. Currently, transformed MFIs transact the bulk of all microfinance operations, measured by number of clients as well as portfolio size. However, the few transformations that have taken place in the Arab World have mostly involved transforming international microcredit programs into registered institutions, with many of them remaining unregulated. The reasons for this are mostly related to the broader enabling environment and to legal frameworks and regulations that include an increase in taxes owed under the new legal status. In addition, concerns of mission drift, long central to discussions of transformation, have led to skepticism of the process altogether. Lastly, MFI employees may have concerns about the transformation process, ranging from their personal beliefs to uncertainty about their future under a new for-profit company. In recent years, however, regulations in some Arab countries have changed, and other barriers to transformation, such as concerns about mission drift and doubts among staff, have been handled with greater delicacy and success. Accordingly, the time has come to take a closer look at what this process might entail. This paper presents the Arab context, and discusses the benefits, costs, challenges, and opportunities associated with transforming a not-for-profit into a for-profit entity - not necessarily a bank. While what has worked elsewhere may not necessarily be applicable in the Arab World, the body of evidence is quite clear that institutional growth is sustained by a variety of funding channels, and that the opportunity to grow and better serve the underserved has encouraged many MFIs in the Arab World to reconsider transformation. This study also presents the results of a survey conducted jointly by IFC and Sanabel to better understand where MFIs in the Arab World currently stand in the transformation process. The survey was sent by email to a select group of MFIs that are either the leading MFIs in their countries or have already expressed interest in transformation. It was composed of two sections. The first collected background information, particularly about their current legal structure and plans to transform. The second was addressed to MFIs that have already transformed or are considering transformation, to understand how they view the benefits and challenges. As a part of this undertaking, the survey also asked questions about the MFIs' interest in allowing staff to participate in the transformed entity's equity by setting up an employee stock option plan (ESOP). This is a form of staff compensation in which select staff are awarded shares in the share-capital company that employs them. A few MFIs in other regions have implemented ESOPs during transformation to address staff concerns, reward demanding work, and align individuals' goals with those of the institution. The survey sought to measure interest in ESOPs among respondents, as well as ask how they view the benefits, challenges, and appropriate terms of ESOPs. For MFIs wishing to explore this concept more deeply, Annex I of this paper addresses ways to implement ESOPs, and presents examples of MFIs that have elected to offer them.
The purpose of the 'Microfinance Handbook' is to bring together in a single source guiding principles and tools that will promote sustainable microfinance and create viable institutions.
“Microfinance: Text and Cases” uses a practical approach to microfinance integrating theory and case studies drawn from microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the Arab countries. It is written for undergraduate and postgraduate curricula of business schools and faculties of Economics and Social Sciences as well as for microfinance practitioners around the world. The first part is the theoretical component of this training support. The second part is a collection of 21 case studies of MFIs from seven Arab countries. This manual is the main outcome of the “Microfinance at the University” project and the result of the joint efforts of the project partners who wrote the different cases in close contact with MFIs, who enriched the resulting project with their personal experiences and perspectives. The main goal of the project is the introduction of microfinance into universities and this text, by providing the basics and illustrative cases from the region and references, aims to stimulate the discussion on the subject at the university level and ultimately to further develop microfinance in the Arab region.
This study evaluates the effectiveness of IFC's strategic priority of private sector development in frontier countries (high-risk and/or low-income) by supporting micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) during fiscal years (FY)1994-2006. IFC has channeled its support to MSME's by: i) indirect financing through financial intermediaries, and ii) by indirect institution-building support via specialized regional small and medium enterprise (SME) development facilities. This evaluation analyzes IFC's development results and provides recommendations on how IFC's performance can be improved in this area going forward.
Following the positive impact of microfinance on poverty reduction, women empowerment, and microenterprise development in some countries in Asia and Africa, a huge amount of time has been devoted by researchers to understanding how this concept can be used as a catalyst for transforming and sustaining the economies of developing and emerging countries. Though there are a few books on the role of microfinance in reducing poverty in developing countries across world, there is no specific book that explores the role of microfinance in transforming and sustaining economies of developing and emerging countries. Transforming Economies Through Microfinance in Developing Nations seeks to explore how the provision of microfinance to individuals and groups can contribute to the economic transformation and sustainability of the economies of developing and emerging countries. Covering key topics such as climate change, entrepreneurship, and rural development, this reference work is ideal for government officials, entrepreneurs, policymakers, researchers, academicians, practitioners, scholars, instructors, and students.
A major source of financing for the poor and no longer a niche industry Over the past four decades, microfinance—the provision of loans, savings, and insurance to small businesses and entrepreneurs shut out of traditional capital markets—has grown from a niche service in Bangladesh and a few other countries to a significant global source of financing. Some 200 million people globally now receive support from microfinance institutions, with most of the recipients in the developing world. In the beginning, much of the microfinance industry was managed by non-governmental organizations, but today the majority of these institutions are commercial and regulated by governments, and they provide safe places for the poor to save, as well as offering much-needed capital and other financial services. Now out of infancy, the microfinance industry faces major challenges, including its ability to deal with mobile banking and other technology and concerns that some markets are now over-saturated with microfinance. How the industry deals with these and other challenges will determine whether it will continue to grow or will be subsumed within the larger global financial sector. This book is based on the results of a workshop at Lehigh University among thirty-four leaders in the industry. The editors, working with contributions from more than a dozen leading authorities in the field, tell the important story of how microfinance developed, how it has met the needs of hundreds of millions of people, and they address key questions about how it can continue to meet those needs in the future.
In 2011 the World Bank—with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation—launched the Global Findex database, the world's most comprehensive data set on how adults save, borrow, make payments, and manage risk. Drawing on survey data collected in collaboration with Gallup, Inc., the Global Findex database covers more than 140 economies around the world. The initial survey round was followed by a second one in 2014 and by a third in 2017. Compiled using nationally representative surveys of more than 150,000 adults age 15 and above in over 140 economies, The Global Findex Database 2017: Measuring Financial Inclusion and the Fintech Revolution includes updated indicators on access to and use of formal and informal financial services. It has additional data on the use of financial technology (or fintech), including the use of mobile phones and the Internet to conduct financial transactions. The data reveal opportunities to expand access to financial services among people who do not have an account—the unbanked—as well as to promote greater use of digital financial services among those who do have an account. The Global Findex database has become a mainstay of global efforts to promote financial inclusion. In addition to being widely cited by scholars and development practitioners, Global Findex data are used to track progress toward the World Bank goal of Universal Financial Access by 2020 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The database, the full text of the report, and the underlying country-level data for all figures—along with the questionnaire, the survey methodology, and other relevant materials—are available at www.worldbank.org/globalfindex.
Research on MFI performance is still in its infancy. MFIs are hybrid organizations with dual objectives. Performance studies in microfinance are therefore less straightforward compared to performance studies in traditional banking research. This book contains new MFI performance research by top scholars from across the globe.
International Academic Conference on Teaching, Learning and E-learning in Dresden 2019 International Academic Conference on Management, Economics and Marketing in Dresden 2019