Microfinance Industry Report: Sri Lanka

This report presents an analysis of the microfinance industry in Sri Lanka, and gives a brief overview of the country’s financial sector.

The report discusses microfinance providers, access to financial services, meso-level support, government policy, and donor support in Sri Lanka. It states that the sector features:

• Diverse range of players including co-operative rural banks, thrift and credit co-operative societies, Samurdhi Bank Societies, NGOs and licensed specialized banks;
• Major disparities at various socioeconomic levels although a survey of approximately 3000 Sri Lankan households reveals that 82.5% of households have obtained financial services from institutions;
• Limited meso–level infrastructure and use of information technology in the microfinance sector;
• No national policy for the microfinance sector, but the Mahinda Chintana 10–year development framework mentions strategies for development of SME sector;
• Post-tsunami funding, support from multi-lateral and bi-lateral agencies such as ADB, JICA and GTZ.

The report identifies the strengths of the country’s microfinance sector, and highlights challenges facing the sector at micro, meso and macro levels.