Village savings and loans: A pathway to financial inclusion for Africa's poorest households
For Africa's poorest and most marginalized households, few financial institutions exist to serve them, and where institutions do exist they generally have inappropriate products and services. To address the issue of financial inclusion and reach poorer clients, CARE began promoting a savings-led microfinance model, called Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs). The VSLA model is based on the belief that for the extremely poor, particularly women, the best approach is to begin by building their financial assets and skills through savings rather than debt. Through participation in a VSLA members can diversify their activities, plant additional crops and even add new income-generating activities. At the same time, they are able to save and borrow in ways that allow them to smooth cyclical household consumption patterns. Now more than ever before, we see VSLAs as an important, and often necessary, rung on the ladder of financial inclusion.Anguria, J., Kanyesigye, J., Nsabagasani, X. and Owor, J. (2008) Scaling Up Savings to Augment Income Nationally (SUSTAIN) Program Impact Assessment Report, CARE Uganda.
CARE (2010a) Village Agent VSLA Performance Surveys. Malawi and Tanzania, CARE USA, Access Africa.
CARE (2010b) ‘Village Agent and Village Agent VSLA Performance Survey Assessment Results’, PowerPoint Presentation, Malawi and Tanzania Village Agent survey data, presented to the BMGF November 2010, Seattle.
Collins, D., Morduch, J., Rutherford, S. and Ruthven, O. (2009) Portfolios of the Poor: How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
Goldberg, N. (2005) Measuring the Impact of Microfinance: Taking Stock of What We Know. December 2005, IPA, New Haven Connecticut.
Uganda Bureau of Statistics and Macro International Inc. (2007) Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (2006), UBOS and Macro International Inc., Calverton, MD.
Anguria, J., Kanyesigye, J., Nsabagasani, X. and Owor, J. (2008) Scaling Up Savings to Augment Income Nationally (SUSTAIN) Program Impact Assessment Report, CARE Uganda.
CARE (2010a) Village Agent VSLA Performance Surveys. Malawi and Tanzania, CARE USA, Access Africa.
CARE (2010b) ‘Village Agent and Village Agent VSLA Performance Survey Assessment Results’, PowerPoint Presentation, Malawi and Tanzania Village Agent survey data, presented to the BMGF November 2010, Seattle.
Collins, D., Morduch, J., Rutherford, S. and Ruthven, O. (2009) Portfolios of the Poor: How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
Goldberg, N. (2005) Measuring the Impact of Microfinance: Taking Stock of What We Know. December 2005, IPA, New Haven Connecticut.
Uganda Bureau of Statistics and Macro International Inc. (2007) Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (2006), UBOS and Macro International Inc., Calverton, MD.
Anguria, J., Kanyesigye, J., Nsabagasani, X. and Owor, J. (2008) Scaling Up Savings to Augment Income Nationally (SUSTAIN) Program Impact Assessment Report, CARE Uganda.
CARE (2010a) Village Agent VSLA Performance Surveys. Malawi and Tanzania, CARE USA, Access Africa.
CARE (2010b) ‘Village Agent and Village Agent VSLA Performance Survey Assessment Results’, PowerPoint Presentation, Malawi and Tanzania Village Agent survey data, presented to the BMGF November 2010, Seattle.
Collins, D., Morduch, J., Rutherford, S. and Ruthven, O. (2009) Portfolios of the Poor: How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
Goldberg, N. (2005) Measuring the Impact of Microfinance: Taking Stock of What We Know. December 2005, IPA, New Haven Connecticut.
Uganda Bureau of Statistics and Macro International Inc. (2007) Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (2006), UBOS and Macro International Inc., Calverton, MD.
Anguria, J., Kanyesigye, J., Nsabagasani, X. and Owor, J. (2008) Scaling Up Savings to Augment Income Nationally (SUSTAIN) Program Impact Assessment Report, CARE Uganda.
CARE (2010a) Village Agent VSLA Performance Surveys. Malawi and Tanzania, CARE USA, Access Africa.
CARE (2010b) ‘Village Agent and Village Agent VSLA Performance Survey Assessment Results’, PowerPoint Presentation, Malawi and Tanzania Village Agent survey data, presented to the BMGF November 2010, Seattle.
Collins, D., Morduch, J., Rutherford, S. and Ruthven, O. (2009) Portfolios of the Poor: How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
Goldberg, N. (2005) Measuring the Impact of Microfinance: Taking Stock of What We Know. December 2005, IPA, New Haven Connecticut.
Uganda Bureau of Statistics and Macro International Inc. (2007) Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (2006), UBOS and Macro International Inc., Calverton, MD.
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