Tackling the 'frontiers' of microfinance in Kenya: the role for decentralized services
Susan Johnson, Markku Malkamäki, Kuria Wanjau
Formal microfinance organizations have difficulty extending their services to remote rural areas in Kenya, as elsewhere in Africa. This article proposes to map the frontiers of microfinance in Kenya based on poverty incidence and population density. It then presents a spectrum of centralizedand decentralized models, from banks to MFIs, SACCOs, ASCAs and ROSCAs. The more decentralized models, which involve greater user-ownership and management, have the potential to provide services to poorer people and in rural areas due to inherently lower cost structures and key characteristics
of their services, despite many challenges to their long-term effectiveness and sustainability. Five organizations in Kenya that are reaching into rural areas are analysed to explore where the frontiers lie. It concludes by discussing potential strategies for the improvement of decentralized
services as the 'bottom up' spike of a two-pronged approach which complements centralized service delivery.
and decentralized models, from banks to MFIs, SACCOs, ASCAs and ROSCAs. The more decentralized models, which involve greater user-ownership and management, have the potential to provide services to poorer people and in rural areas due to inherently lower cost structures and key characteristics
of their services, despite many challenges to their long-term effectiveness and sustainability. Five organizations in Kenya that are reaching into rural areas are analysed to explore where the frontiers lie. It concludes by discussing potential strategies for the improvement of decentralized
services as the 'bottom up' spike of a two-pronged approach which complements centralized service delivery.
M-pesa: A Case Study of the Critical Early Adopters’ Role in the Rapid Adoption of Mobile Money Banking in Kenya
Ngugi, Benjamin
Pelowski, Matthew
Ogembo, Javier Gordon
The Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries, Vol. 43 (2010), Iss. 1 P.1
https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1681-4835.2010.tb00307.x [Citations: 42]Attracting Microfinance Investment Funds: Promoting Microfinance Growth through Increased Investments in Kenya
Matu, Jeffrey Ben
(2008)
https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1290673 [Citations: 0]“Credit plus” microcredit schemes: a key to women's adaptive capacity
Caretta, Martina Angela
Climate and Development, Vol. 6 (2014), Iss. 2 P.179
https://doi.org/10.1080/17565529.2014.886990 [Citations: 18]Development Finance
Reflections on Microfinance
Muriu, Peter W.
Murinde, Victor
Mullineux, Andrew William
2017
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54166-2_5 [Citations: 1]- Development impact bonds: learning from the Asháninka cocoa and coffee case in Peru
- Trade-off between outreach and sustainability of microfinance institutions: evidence from sub-Saharan Africa
- Value chain development for rural poverty reduction: A reality check and a warning
- Impact assessment of commodity standards: towards inclusive value chains
- What is cocoa sustainability? Mapping stakeholders’ socio-economic, environmental, and commercial constellations of priorities
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