Microfinance Forum focuses on pro-poor innovations

MEETING: The Asia Microfinance Forum was held in Beijing, China from March 21 to 24 at the Tianlun Dynasty Hotel in Beijing. The forum was conducted by the Bank with the Poor Network (BWTP) with the lead sponsorship of Citigroup foundation with the assistance of the Foundation for Development Cooperation (FDC).

Around 250 participants gathered in this forum from different parts of the Asia, and members of various microfinance institutions and funding agencies who were keen in developing micro finance activities to the poor and deprived of banking facilities.

The Forum was focused with the main theme of increasing the impact of microfinance in Asia by partnership and innovations.

Many members of the BWTP network did their presentations by sharing their expertise in developing microfinance activities.

They were focused on expanding electronic banking activities for the poor, accessing capital by innovative rural finance approaches and deepening outreach of financial services to the poor.

The microfinance activities have been developed with micro savings, micro credit and micro insurance and designed for the poor and low income earners to suit their income pattern and to be acceptable by the poor.

Since there is a need and demand for microfinance in the larger segment of the people who have been considered living below the poverty line it was felt that financial institutions also need banking products to suit the poor according to the income pattern to develop them further.

As there is a need to develop microfinance activities among the large segment of poor people, microfinance institutions, societies and organisations have to be funded and developed on proper financial management and supervision systems to develop savings, credit and insurance products to serve the poor according to their need.

Further to grant additional funds through the banks, the microfinance institutions have to be trained to maintain proper accounting systems acceptable to the banks.It was also observed during the programme that there are many global banking giants keen in funding through financial institutions who are actively involved in activities for the mutual development of the banks and the people who are considered as poor globally.