As some of you already explained, one cannot leave financial inclusion to corporates who want to redeem their greed with some charity. They enjoy organising these events as much as they organise golf or sailing tournaments.

More concretely though I would like to argue that the absence of commitment of the event and their discussants is clear from their lack of understanding. They promote mobile banking, savings, no rigid regulation and SME credit as copied from CGAP's and SEEP's websites.

They, as many Microfinance champions unfortunately do, ignore that building an inclusive financial sector is, as much as building inclusive economies and societies, a local process. Such a local process requires coherence in strategy, policies and regulatory framework, and consistency, authority and credibility in its implementation. It is not only about asking something from a central bank.

Let us not end with criticizing others on not doing their job, but let us focus on strengthening the local process. When governments are in charge of their development processes, and all actors want and can be held accountable for their performance, or lack of it, then all foreign supporters can also be held to account, or be refused to undermine local processes. When we are successful in publishing the lack of commitment, knowledge and accountability of so-called supporters then they will either leave or integrate into the local process.

And as most of you know, building an inclusive financial sector does not need so much external capital as today is being put in. It first and foremost requires local trust building between government, citizens and local capital holders, forging an alliance with a long-term and genuine commitment towards building a society in which all citizens have access to elementary services that enable people to lead a full life.

As some of you already explained, one cannot leave financial inclusion to corporates who want to redeem their greed with some charity. They enjoy organising these events as much as they organise golf or sailing tournaments.

More concretely though I would like to argue that the absence of commitment of the event and their discussants is clear from their lack of understanding. They promote mobile banking, savings, no rigid regulation and SME credit as copied from CGAP's and SEEP's websites.

They, as many Microfinance champions unfortunately do, ignore that building an inclusive financial sector is, as much as building inclusive economies and societies, a local process. Such a local process requires coherence in strategy, policies and regulatory framework, and consistency, authority and credibility in its implementation. It is not only about asking something from a central bank.

Let us not end with criticizing others on not doing their job, but let us focus on strengthening the local process. When governments are in charge of their development processes, and all actors want and can be held accountable for their performance, or lack of it, then all foreign supporters can also be held to account, or be refused to undermine local processes. When we are successful in publishing the lack of commitment, knowledge and accountability of so-called supporters then they will either leave or integrate into the local process.

And as most of you know, building an inclusive financial sector does not need so much external capital as today is being put in. It first and foremost requires local trust building between government, citizens and local capital holders, forging an alliance with a long-term and genuine commitment towards building a society in which all citizens have access to elementary services that enable people to lead a full life.

Dear Microfinance Event Organizers,
Good afternoon and trust you are well.We would appreciate if your outfit could send us the 2011 events (trainings,workshops,seminars,conferences and your related Microfince programmes).
We kindly also ask you to send us your procedure (how) to apply each event,the total cost per programme,the venue and
dates to enable us for participation.

We look forward for your united weight and support.

Kind regards,

Andrew Opoku Agyeman
Chairman & C.E.O.
Unity Star Limited
P.O.Box KS 12974
Kumasi,Ghana
Phone:(+233) 24 4811 122 / 20 2930 345

As far as India is concerned there has been significant obligation on the part of elected representatives, right from the year 1950 when Indian citizens accepted the Constitution, to create enabling environment for rural poor comprising landless laborers, tenant farmers, share croppers, oral lessees, marginal farmers, those who live in hilly, tribal, desert & drought prone areas so as to facilitate them to use their 0.1 hp energy & inherited skill to generate wealth & use that created wealth for their own socio-economic development. In this process elected representatives, administrators, financiers, business communities & non-governmental organizations need to bring science, technology, capital, infrastructure together to help rural poor to generate wealth from meagre rural respouces they own in form of human labour, skill, livestock, land [owned or leased] water, fisheries, forestry, sunshine, etc & share that wealth for their development. Government comprising political leaders, administrators & judiciary must ensure that rural poor have easy, reliable & assured access to fuel, drinking water, education, heath services, transpport & communication, shelter having impact on human development index. Microfinance has no meaning when this basic thinking is grossly missing in any program meant for poor. Dr Amrit Patel, Edison, NJ 08837 USA[732-553-0825]

It may be clearly understood that the corporate bodies owe certain duties to the community and should be transparently responsible to them and to the society at large. First and foremost among them is strict compliance with laws of the land in relation to pollution, health, environment and concern for the society. This is all the more essential in the prevailing socio-economic milieu where the corporate bodies in several countries indulge in polluting the rivers and other water bodies including aquifers. It is high time to have an inclusive growth approach, rather than following an undeclared anti-social and anti-people approach on the one hand and a proclaimed CSR creed on the other. Corporate bodies everywhere, namely in production, trading, banking, etc., should not be doing any unethical operations for amassing instant profits by exploitations and manipulations. Basically good governance is the key word, preamble and post-script for CSR.

It may be perceived unambiguously that it is not an attempt to debate the pros and cons of CSR. But it is looking into CSR as and when it comes in the form of resources for redeployment. As such it is examining the desirability of channeling the CSR recourses through NGOs and dedicating it under the head of micro finance.

It is very clearly brought to sharp focus by an overwhelming majority of the respondents of an internatioanl study undetaken by me that their perception of CSR is to plough back part of the profits of companies and businesses for sustainable development oriented activities. It is worth recalling that 93 per cent of the respondents had favored NGOs as the right vehicle to channel CSR funds on account of their grass root level connections and transparency in their approach and outlook. Of course, they were very vocal in their views about cowboy NGOs as well. They were voting only for NGOs which were above board and run on professional lines with credibility. An overwhelming majority had opined that NGOs may take up micro finance activities by making use of CSR related funds for ensuring sustainable development in the community around them.

97 per cent of the sample respondents had voted in favor of cost effectiveness of micro finance operations by NGOs. May be the wisdom coming from the field is worth experimenting with location and regional refinements. The extent of recovery performance of NGOs in relation to micro finance at 67 percent as “better recovery” cannot be taken as a major suggestive policy indication. It may be noted that 33 per cent of the respondents had opined that NGOs do not make any difference with regard to recovery of micro finance activities. In contrast, the recovery performance of micro finance institutions in Bangladesh at 95 percent is laudable and even worth studying. MFIs are to be subjected to strict and close scrutiny for human rights violations related to micro credit loan processing, sanction, disbursal and recovery.

But one important factor affecting the loan utilization and resultant repayment is the general inequalities and asymmetries that are prevailing in the economy. Income inequality is the major factor to be reckoned with. It is a sad commentary of our developmental dynamics that those with resources are included and those without resources are excluded. In fact the policy thrust must be one of integrated and inclusive approach towards planning and development. The starting point for any meaningful policy intervention aimed at the poor is that micro studies are required to theorize and conceptualize many a hunch and that is possible, among others by engaging focus group discussions on an on going basis.

It is interesting to note that all the respondents of this 10 nation sample study had opined that wider coverage of CSR related funds deployment may be done only through NGOs. Obviously it is an excellent policy indication for those who are the movers and shakers of policy domain in the developing world and that too particularly, in the context of the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations.

The starting point is to empower the NGOs themselves. As already mentioned elsewhere in this paper, select only those NGOs with impeccable integrity to channel the CSR funds for redeployment. Again the selected NGOs must have undergone both financial and social audit and must be role models.

It was suggested that NGOs must be strengthened with professional staff and competent advisors. It was felt that only those NGOs with sound monitoring and evaluation systems may be selected for channeling the CSR funds for redeployment.

NGOs which resort to strong arm tactics in effecting recovery may be discriminated against in channeling the CSR funds. In fact, intimidating methods in recovering dues of loans or outstanding amounts must be done away with. NGOs are to be assessed periodically to review their credibility and to ascertain whether they function as friend, philosopher and guide to their stake holders and SHGs.

Researchers are challenged the world over and particularly in Asia, Africa and Latin America to take up the CSR-NGO-Micro-credit-theme as the prime theme of investigation during the first half of the 21st century. It may be noted that out of the eight MDGs at least eradication of poverty and hunger is directly related to the theme of this paper. Gender equality and women employment under the banner of SHGs and NGOs in relation to micro finance do find a prominent place in the modes operandi of the achievement of the MDGs of the UN. The future beckons, shall we falter?

Dr KM George, EX- UN Adviosr on Micro Finance & Monitoring & Evalaution; ( melmana@gmail.com)

1. The session title of the forum should have been as “Financial inclusion; beyond Micro credit” ; Not as “Beyond Micro finance” since conceptually MF services includes micro savings, remittance, micro insurance besides micro credit.
2. Among the needs for financial services of the underserved, only savings and remittances are highlighted. But micro insurance, an important micro financial services for the vulnerable underserved poor, has not been given due consideration. Micro insurance protects both the lender and borrower
3. Mobile banking is a good mode for more financial inclusion to the underserved. A cautious approach is needed ;because given the level of illiteracy& knowledge on maintenance and handling the mobile device from the customer side, and , expansion of infrastructure for the technology (-tower links) & servicing facilities for the device for the different geographical region, there is a risk of benefits of the technology being cornered and misuse by a few thereby creating further widening the inequity among the underserved.
4. Extension of micro credit to SMEs need to be relooked into as MF services are meant for the poor and underserved. In such case there will be mission drift. SMEs fall outside the poverty circle
5. The success of financial inclusion largely depends on creating other supporting services needed for ensuring productivity of the given the financial services like micro credit in remote corner / part of the country. Otherwise mere financial inclusion will not work
Dr.V.Rengarajan
Consultant- Micro finance