By pushing the «banking frontier» further down the poverty line, access to financial services for smallholder farmers and micro-entrepreneurs increases, thereby boosting their economic activities. With their own savings and microloans, target groups can respond better to income fluctuations, protect themselves against crisis situations such as illness and crop failure, and build up their entrepreneurial skills. The programme is implementing innovative financial products tailored to the needs of the disadvantaged population groups. Beneficiaries’ incomes and their quality of life are improving significantly. Additionally, the programme is building the skills of the financial services workforce, thereby improving professionality and diversity within that sector.
The programme also acts as a competence centre, offering financial service advice to other projects within the region that target smallholders, MSMEs, youth in TVET and housing cooperatives.
⇒ By learning skills in finance and gaining access to financial services, 70% of beneficiaries will increase their incomes.