SEEP: Programs and Working Groups: Capacity Building: Network Development Services: Network Development Services

Goal

The Technical Assistance and Action Research Project (TAARP), a collaborative learning project between SEEP and country-level microfinance networks, seeks to leverage human and financial resources available from SEEP and the participating national networks to advance the role of networks in their regional and national microfinance markets. The networks primarily focus on the following actions:
• Delivering demand-driven, fee-based services to microfinance institution (MFI) members.
• Improving dissemination of microfinance best practices.
• Improving monitoring and benchmarking of the microfinance industry.
• Improving transparency in MFI financial performance.
• Representing the members’ interest to government/donors.

Services

• Providing technical assistance in working group development and design, organizing annual meeting, developing network sustainability strategies, assessing network capacity, exchanging electronic information, and installing and implementing performance-monitoring systems.
• Providing technical assistance in implementing a network self-assessment tool.
• Providing technical assistance in implementing the MicroBanking Bulletin Toolkit or other appropriate benchmarking tool to collect MFI data.

Network Development Fund

SEEP provides a Network Development Fund to help implement some activities on a cost-share basis. Fund activities include MFI training; technical assistance, such as new product development, to MFI members; MFI performance monitoring; analysis of microfinance regulations; exchange visits; and national microfinance newsletters and other publications.

Network Participants

Asia
• Pakistan: Pakistan Microfinance Network (PMN)
• Philippines: Microfinance Council of the Philippines (MCPI)

Eastern and Central Europe
• Azerbaijan: Azerbaijan Microfinance Association (AMFA)

Latin America
• Ecuador: Red Financiera Rural (RFR)
• Guatemala: Red de Instituciones de Microfinanzas de Guatemala (REDIMIF)

Sub-Saharan Africa
• Ghana: Ghana Microfinance Institutions Network (GHAMFIN)
• Ethiopia: Association of Ethiopian Microfinance Institutions (AEMFI)
• Madagascar: Association Professionnelle des Institutions Financieres (APIFM)
• Uganda: Association of Microfinance Institutions of Uganda (AMFIU)