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ey Central Bank of Sri Lanka April - June 2020 Volume 40 Number 2 Microfinance sector landscape in 02 Sri Lanka News SurvTaste of the Low-Country Tea which 07 strengthens Sri Lanka's Economy Introduction of New Financial Market THIS ISSUE 20 Infrastructures to Promote the Government Securities Market IN Participation of Non-Banks in Retail 25 Payment System ISSN 1391 3589 The views expressed in the articles are those of the writers Price per copy: Rs. 60.00 and are not necessarily those of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. Annual subscriptionCentral (Inclusive Bank of Sri of Lanka postage): Rs. 420.001 News Survey /April - June 2020 Microfinance sector landscape in Sri Lanka Mr. S D H D S Jeewakarathne Senior Assistant Superintendent Employees’ Provident Fund Department Central Bank of Sri Lanka 1. Microfinance & its global context mainly to low income persons and micro enterprises…..” Microfinance refers to the provision of a broad range of financial services such as deposits, loans, The goal of microfinancing is to provide individuals payment services, money transfers, and insurance with money to invest in themselves or their business. to poor and low income households, entrepreneurs Remenyi (1997) pointed out that microfinance is and small business owners and who do not have increasingly recognized as an effective instrument access to traditional sources of capital, like banks for poverty reduction. or investors. Although, microfinance is defined Bangladesh's Dr. Muhammad Yunus is the narrowly as microcredit or broadly as microcredit pioneer of the modern version of microfinance plus micro savings, microinsurance, pre and post which reached a much wider audience with the loan technical trainings and business supports, establishment of the 'Grameen Bank' Grcept. in this article, the term microfinance is narrowly Microfinance is one of the most widely accepted used for microcredit. Microfinance is defined as instruments for poverty alleviation throughout the “provision of financial services to low income world and it has been used in Sri Lanka for several people” by the Consultative Group to Assist the decades. The United Nations General Assembly, Poor (CGAP)1. in recognition of the significance of microfinance in reducing poverty and achieving the Millennium The Microfinance Act No. 6 of 2016 provides a Development Goals (MDGs), designated the year definition of the microfinance business, which is, 2005 as the 'International Year of Microcredit'. “Accepting deposits and providing:- The year was aimed at raising public awareness of the importance of microcredit and microfinance, (a) financial accommodation in any form; supporting sustainable access to financial services (b) other financial services; or and promoting innovation and new partnerships to expand the outreach of microfinance. There (c) financial accommodation in any form and is a strong demand for small-scale commercial other financial services financial services – both credit and savings – from low-income households (Robinson, 2001). 1. https://www.cbsl.gov.lk/en/financial-system/financial-system- stability/microfinance-sector Economists had identified the poor as part of a 2 Central Bank of Sri Lanka News Survey /April - June 2020 huge “informal” sector that remained “essentially sector in Sri Lanka is different from other countries invisible, in government plans and budgets, in due to its low population and high financial access economists’ models, in bankers’ portfolios, and in relative to other emerging economies. In Sri national policies” (Robinson, 2001, pp. 12). Lanka, microcredit is offered to finance income- producing activities with the goal of promoting The idea of providing credit to the poor as a tool local entrepreneurship. However, the extent for increasing their income and thereby reducing of outreach of operators including NGOs and poverty, is not new. The novel dimension in commercial banks in rural areas is rather limited. microfinance is the innovative methods of In recent years, microfinance has been looked upon providing credit to the poor (i.e., the usage of as an effective instrument for poverty alleviation social collateral such as group guarantee instead of by many governments, international organizations physical collateral, progressive lending approach, and donors. Microfinance has helped households peer pressure and peer monitoring), mobilization in middle quintiles to increase their income and of savings from the poor and linking credit assets. Further, it has assisted poor households to provision to savings, social mobilization process increase consumption expenditure; has worked as that involves awareness building and formation an instrument of consumption-smoothing among of self-help groups and provision of other services almost all income groups; and has helped women to such as insurance to cover risks and distresses increase their social status and improve economic faced by the poor. conditions. 2. Microfinance Institutions Provision of financial services to low income households has a long history in Sri Lanka i.e. Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) seek to create the early years of the 20th century. ‘Cheetu’ in social benefits and promote financial inclusion Sri Lanka, operating at least since the early 20th by providing financial services to low income century, is an informal but effective way of saving households. As these institutions build partnerships and capital accumulation, and therefore, functions with their clients, it is important to define core as a basic method of microfinance for the poor2. values and fair practices and therefore ensure that The microfinance movement in Sri Lanka dates as microfinance services are provided in a manner far back as 1906 with the establishment of Thrift that benefits and respects clients. and Credit Co-operative Societies (TCCSs) under In addition to all regulatory guidelines introduced by the Co-operative Societies Ordinance introduced 3 the Government of Sri Lanka for the microfinance by the British colonial administration . These were sector, this code of conduct adopted by Lanka the first credit co-operatives to be established in Microfinance Practitioners’ Association is to ensure Sri Lanka. These were the pioneers in providing that the highest level of professionalism, ethical financial facilities to the poor. Nevertheless, conduct and good governance is observed by all microfinance began to be widely recognized in Sri Lanka as a central tool for alleviating poverty microfinance practitioners and their employees; and empowering the poor in late 1980s, with and binds its member MFIs and their employees to the enactment of the Government’s Janasaviya total compliance as a condition of its membership. programme. In the 1990s, the expansion of 3. History of Microfinance in Sri Lanka 2. https://www.cbsl.gov.lk/en/financial-system/financial-system- stability/microfinance-sector Microfinance services in Sri Lanka have a wide 3. Athambawa Jahfer and Hansiya Abdul Rauf; An Analysis of geographical outreach. The context of microfinance Economic Impact of Microfinance Programs through Self Help Groups in Sri Lanka Central Bank of Sri Lanka 3 News Survey /April - June 2020 microfinance activities embraced all sectors, The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) is another namely governmental, non-governmental and key player, which functions as the executing agency cooperative sectors. The establishment of the of a number of rural credit programmes funded by National Development Trust Fund (NDTF) in 1991 various donor agencies and the Government of as an apex lending institution was also another Sri Lanka (GOSL). Not only GOSL, but also Non turning point in the microfinance sector in Sri Government Organizations have launched poverty 4 Lanka . alleviation progammes in the country. 4. Microfinance as a tool for poverty Despite the large number of institutions involved alleviation in Sri Lanka in providing microfinance facilities in Sri Lanka, Currently, there is a wide range of institutions their impact on reducing poverty or improving that are involved in providing microfinance household welfare is not very clear. Only a few services to low income groups in Sri Lanka. studies have been undertaken to assess how These include Cooperative Societies (e.g., microfinance has impacted poverty and living TCCSs), hundreds of local and international Non- conditions of the households in Sri Lanka7. Governmental Organizations (NGOs), Licensed Commercial Banks (both state-owned and private) Development of rural infrastructure facilities is of and development banks such as the Regional prime importance to improve the outreach of MFIs Development Banks (RDBs). The Government of in remote rural areas and encourage the private and Sri Lanka has launched several national poverty NGO sectors to have a more effective involvement alleviation programmes after the economic in microfinance provision. liberalization period such as Janasawiya, targeted Three main donors i.e. the Asian Development food stamp programme and Samurdhi programme. Bank (ADB), the World Bank and the Japanese The Government’s Samurdhi Savings and Credit government provided over 60% of foreign aid to Sri Scheme established in 1996 is presently one of Lanka and their efforts in poverty reduction focused the largest microcredit and social mobilization programmes in Sri Lanka, with over 32,000 village on economic growth as the main driver. “However, level societies and over 1000 bank branches the ‘trickle-down’ effect which this relies on has not