Connecting Microfinance Mutuals

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ABOUT INAFI

INAFI (International Network of Alternative Financial Institutions) is a global network of development organisations involved in supporting microfinance programmes of member organisations in Asia, Latin America and Africa and now recently in Eastern Europe too.  INAFI brings together microfinance practitioner NGOs at three levels – international, regional (Continental – Asia, Africa and Latin America) and country level as in India, Bangladesh, Philippines, etc. INAFI networks target client group consisting of the poor and disadvantaged particularly, poor women and other vulnerable groups.  Since its inception in 1995, INAFI has expanded to reach over 150 member organisations from four continents that provide financial services to the poor.

INAFI GLOBAL VISION

A World where the poor are empowered and ensured sustainable livelihood with dignity.

CORE VALUES

           I. Inclusive, Holistic, Diverse

          N. Native, Indigenous

          A. Alternative

          F. Facilitating, Enabling

           I. Innovative, Imaginative

THE STATE OF THE WORLD

More than one out of five people in the world - 1.3 billion people - struggle to live on less than US$ 1 per day.  Most of these people live in the under developed regions of Asia, Africa, Latin America and in the rural areas.

Governments have set 2015 as the timeline for meeting the Millennium Development Goals: eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, achieve universal primary education, promote gender equality and empower women, reduce child mortality, improve maternal health, combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, ensure environmental sustainability, and develop a global partnership for development.

THE ROLE OF FINANCIAL SERVICES IN POVERTY ALLEVIATION

Over the last two decades, experiences have shown that when designed to meet the specific needs of the poor, microfinance can be an effective tool for poverty alleviation.  By developing appropriate products and delivery mechanisms, microfinance institutions can help poor people work their own way out of poverty.  Additionally, by delivering financial services at a significant scale, microfinance institutions can achieve financial self-sustainability.

Microfinance practices that involve the poor in design and delivery make the poor active participants in their own development and enhances their self-esteem.  By providing loan rather than grants, the provider can become sustainable by recycling resources over and over again, reducing dependency on external grant / subsidy.

Microfinance has the following two broad objectives for poverty alleviation.

  1. Outreach with sustainability - reaching large numbers of the poor and ensure sustained access to the Microfinance services on a long haul

  2. Impact - ensuring that interventions achieve the dual objectives of economic and social impact

While endeavoring to achieve the above basic objectives, INAFI would adopt the following strategies.

Promote research and development initiatives to enhance product development and institutional capacity to increase outreach, enhance sustainability and improve overall quality of services to clients.

Influence microfinance sector policies and practices to that enable effective donor investments and to ensure that the poorest are served without compromising the autonomy and self-sustainability of the service providers.

Enhance transparency and accountability within the sector by developing appropriate tools and processes for measuring institutional performance and social impact.

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INAFI UNIVERSE

INAFI Africa

 

INAFI Latin American

 

 

 

INAFI Asia

 

INAFI Bangaladesh

 

 

 

INAFI India

 

 

 

INAFI Nepal

 

 

 

INAFI Philippines