Update
1 September – 30 November 2001
Since the beginning of 2001 more than 330 MFI staff have been trained by the MFC.
In September, October and November the MFC has offered 8 training programs to 180 MFI management and staff, coming from 20 different countries in the CEE and the NIS region!
The courses delivered included:
On
Sept. 3- 8, the training was organized in St. Petersburg, Russia as an in-house
course for the directors and managers of FORA Fund and its hubs.
On
Sept. 12-16 the training was organized in Kiev, Ukraine for 27 representatives
of Ukrainian credit unions. The
course was coordinated and funded by DAI/BIZPRO.
The course was organized on Sept. 24-28, 2001 in
Almaty for 18 participants from 5 countries. The Eurasia Foundation financially
supported the participation of some small NGOs from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
On Sept. 24-28 the training in English language
was organized in Dubrovnik, Croatia. The participants, 26 practitioners arrived
chiefly from the Balkan countries.
The training for loan officers of Mercy Corps
International Kyrgyzstan took place on October 1-12 in Bishkek. It consisted of
two separate modules – for loan officers of individual lending and for group
lending.
On October 22-27 in Krakow, Poland the training
on business planning and the use of MICROFIN model took place for 20 MFI
practitioners.
This training course was delivered on Oct 29 –
Nov 2 in Tbilisi, Georgia. The participants – 23 persons – were coming
mainly from Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.
The MFC has developed and pilot tested an innovative training course for microfinance managers. The course was created to help MFIs in determining and developing the best ways to program improvement and innovation using impact assessment or market research tools.The pilot delivery took place from 10 to 12 October in Krakow, Poland. It was highly evaluated by participants and reviewing experts. The first open delivery will take place in May 2002.
On November 12-16, the training was delivered in
Saratov, Russia, for loan officers of FORA and its hubs in Russia.
Please contact Justyna Pytkowska for specific information on the 2002 training agenda, and any feedback on training courses. See also the MFC web page www.mfc.org.pl for further updates of the training schedule.
Contact person: Kasia Pawlak [email protected].
Here are some testimonials of the participants:
“I've learned a lot about qualitative tools -
I understand more about the differences between Impact Assessment and Market
Research”
“I have a feeling that I could start with
implementation of Impact Assessment and
Market Research in my organization, after reviewing all materials”
“I learned a lot about the process of
implementing various tools”
The Imp-Act Project is a three-year worldwide action-research programme designed to improve the quality of microfinance services and their impact on poverty through strengthening the development of impact assessment systems. In the CEE and the NIS, it is implemented by 7 regional MFIs and coordinated by the MFC. The project carries out the research in four areas (for detailed description of the project visit: http://www.mfc.org.pl/impact.php4).
q
systems and processes,
q
wider impacts,
q
impact on reconstruction and networking
On
13 October, the impact team as well as the representatives of the ImpAct UK
coordinating universities met in Krakow to discuss next steps for the project.
It was agreed that the first round of data collection would have been conducted
by April next year. To monitor the project progress, follow the information at
the website above or contact Kasia at [email protected]
The
MFC has started Phase One of the Regional Mapping Study of Microfinance
Institutions in the region. The objectives of this study are to deepen the
understanding of the microfinance industry in the CEE/NIS region, to explore
whether access to financing is a constraint to microfinance development and to
facilitate exchange of market information and help develop partnerships among
donors, investors and MFIs.
The MFI questionnaire has been distributed to 250 MFIs. Please respond to this important questionnaire no later than December 10.
By
completing this questionnaire the MFIs will have the opportunity to voice
concerns over the constraints to development and growth.
Understanding these constraints can help inform policy makers and funders
of the support measures needed to help microfinance grow.
The
MFC will use the results of this study to raise the profile of microfinance in
the region among policymakers and funders.
The
final report will be shared with all participating MFIs - it will provide with
useful insights and knowledge about the experience of microfinance throughout
the region and possibly a basis for regional action on certain issues.
The study will also present how the sector is performing on average
across sub-regions and institutional types.
If
you have not received the questionnaire or require more details on how to
complete it please contact Justyna Pytkowska [email protected]. The
Questionnaire can also be downloaded from the MFC web page www.mfc.org.pl.
Market
Research
MFC
has launched a survey among its Members and other microfinance practitioners in
the region to assess the needs for MFC services and the expectations regarding
the MFC role as a network.
If
you wish to send your opinion about the past and future activities of the MFC
please contact Ewa Pawlak [email protected] or
download the survey from MFC web page www.mfc.org.pl
Web
Page
Please visit the new MFC web page, providing up-to-date information about the activities of the Microfinance Centre.
POLICY
Policy mission has been carried out in Armenia. The goal of the mission was to assess different draft pieces of legislation related to microfinance activities. The mission was sponsored by the Save the Children Fund. Please contact
Grzegorz Galusek for more details.
MFC has engaged in creation of a one-day policy awareness module for public officials. The module will focus on policy reasons to support microfinance development in their countries.
For a big variety of resource materials and presentations from the First Microfinance Policy Forum, which took place in June 2001 in Krakow, please enter the
MFC web page.
In-house training courses:
·
“Delinquency Management and Interest Rates
Setting” for DAI/BIZPRO Ukraine, 4-7 December 2001
·
“Training for Loan Officers” for Moldovan
Microfinance Alliance, 17-21 December 20
Market Research Toolkit Testing
MFC has been carrying out the MicroSave Market Research Toolkit
testing in the region since May 2001. So far two pilot tests have been conducted
in Poland and Croatia. For more information see http://www.mfc.org.pl/marketresearch.php4
or contact Kasia at [email protected].