Rural Microenterprise Finance Project

With funds from the Asian Development Bank and IFAD, the project provided access to credit and other financial services for some of the country’s poorest people. The objective, in accordance with the priorities of the Government of the Philippines, was to create employment opportunities and increase the incomes of extremely poor people in rural areas.

The Grameen Bank approach proved to be an effective alternative to formal financial institutions in the Philippines, providing credit and savings facilities for rural poor people, particularly women, through self-help groups. The project:

• increased availability of credit through self-help groups for investment in microenterprises to generate income and employment
• expanded formation and strengthening of self-help groups
• promoted savings schemes
• strengthened the groups’ institutional capacity to provide simple and accessible financial services
• helped develop a self-sustaining financial system by establishing a nationwide network on the Grameen banking model, comprised of NGOs, local banks, cooperatives, foundations and other organizations
• promoted policy reform to stimulate growth and development of financial services for poor people

Source: IFAD