Case of the Mutuelle Communautaire de Croissance (MC2s), Cameroon: Decentralized Community Banks for Remote Outreach

This paper provides an overview of mutual associations in Cameroon. It examines cases of two such Mutuelle Communautaire de Croissances (MC2s), namely, Njinikom MC2 and Bambalang MC2, focusing specifically on factors that help them increase outreach. Mutual associations have a strong reputation in West Africa for their rural outreach. MC2s have been able to achieve this outreach by:

• Offering financial and other services to individuals and groups;
• Ensuring that every community has at least one MC2, thus increasing the identification of the local population with the institution;
• Using migrant relatives as a key source of funds and market linkages;
• Opening branches and recruiting daily savings collectors to meet local demand for savings;
• Being networked and decentralized;
• Accepting locally-relevant collateral such as grain stocks or clothes.

Finally, supportive regulation has also played a role in increasing MC2 outreach. Regulators have tried to strike a balance between increasing coverage and developing a sound microfinance sector. The paper states that the regulatory requirement for every MC2 to have an external audit is a strong first step. More such regulatory innovations are required to support MC2s.