Eastern Europe and Central Asia Microfinance Analysis and Benchmarking Report 2010
This report studies the microfinance sector in Eastern Europe and Central Asia (ECA) in the context of the economic and financial crises in 2009. It explores how MFIs, policy makers and funders in ECA have adjusted to the risks and challenges presented by the crises.
The report states that MFIs in ECA were hit the hardest among all regions by the crises. It analyzes the effects of the crisis with regard to:
- Products and services;
- Policy environment and infrastructure, including financial inclusion trends, quasi-deposit taking, consumer protection and education, over-indebtedness, government funding and branchless banking;
- Funding structure of MFIs, cross-border funder commitments and outstanding debt financing;
- Financial and social performance of retail MFIs.
The report observes that despite the challenges faced by the ECA microfinance sector in 2009, the crises highlighted certain positive developments. These include growth of savings, reinforcement of financial inclusion agenda among policymakers, increasing regional commitment of funders and improved social performance management and indicator tracking. The report concludes by identifying areas for further research.
