New association of microfinance institutions created in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Commissioned by KfW, AFC in consortium with ADG supported the set-up of the Association Nationale des Institutions Micro Finance (ANIMF) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Even though the microfinance sector in the DRC exists since 1956, it only recently started to grow and nowadays serves around the same number of clients as commercial banks. Nevertheless, there are hardly more than 100,000 clients – a small number compared to a population of more than 70 million people. Various Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) exist, but no association had yet been formed which could speak on their behalf and offer valuable services. In partnership with the Central Bank of the DRC and KfW, our team worked closely together with the MFIs to support the set-up of such a national association. During our work, two main challenges were faced and successfully overcome: On the one hand, there is a felt divide between the Microfinance Institutions of the East (around Goma) and the West (around Kinshasa). Meetings and discussions between all representatives of the sector were therefore of utmost importance; with only limited infrastructure and high costs for transportation, this presented a major challenge. On the other hand, we had taken on the tremendous challenge to create this association without any external financing beyond our consultancy work. In order to ensure true sustainability and to generate commitment and ownership from the MFI side, a model was found which is based solely on revenues from membership fees. To tackle these two challenges, our team facilitated a highly participatory approach, benefiting from the proactive attitude and eager interest of the potential member MFIs. We moderated meetings, organised round table discussions in Goma and Kinshasa and subsequently drew up the legal documents, procedures and code of conduct. Furthermore, we suggested an innovative solution to ensure equal representation of the East and West in the Board of Directors (BoD): While in this first round the President and the Vice President were elected simultaneously, the Vice President will in following rounds automatically be assigned the position of President for the next term. Furthermore demanding that the President and Vice President originate from different states of the DRC, this then leads to a rotating Presidency between East and West, while at the same time allowing for sufficient consistency. Due to the budgetary constraints, the elections were conducted via email vote, for which a number of legal hurdles had to be overcome. With the newly elected Board of Directors and Audit Committee, a strategic planning session was furthermore conducted. During this session, the mission, vision and values were defined and the long-, medium- and short-term goals (including corresponding lists of services) formulated. An adequate budget and financial projections will remain crucial for the continued independence and financial sustainability of the organisation. A first staff member is to be recruited once membership fees have been collected for the staff’s remuneration. Office space and equipment for the association is generously provided free of charge by one member MFI. While naturally a number of issues remain to be addressed and solved, we are convinced that the impressive dedication of the member MFIs as shown during the past months, together with the sound foundation which has been laid, will lead to a stable development of the association and hence to a conducive environment for the whole sector. We wish the young organisation and its members much success and all the best for their future! For further information please contact Simona Helmsmüller simona.helmsmueller [at] afci.de