Microfinance and Financial Inclusion Training Course

Participants can define priority segments using evidence on livelihoods, cash flows and service barriers.

• Household livelihood profiles: salaried workers, farmers, traders and microentrepreneurs
• Income seasonality mapped against household expenses, school fees and emergencies
• Demand-side research using interviews, focus groups and financial diaries
• Segment personas built from income patterns, risks, goals and constraints
• Gender analysis of asset ownership, mobility, documentation and decision authority
• Disability-inclusive service assessment using physical, communication and procedural barriers

Participants can design product features that balance client value, risk and operational cost.

• Product-market fit tested against client jobs, pain points and alternatives
• Loan purpose, amount, term, frequency and grace-period design choices
• Savings features: liquidity, commitment, access rules, fees and minimum balances
• Payments design covering merchant acceptance, remittances, bills and government transfers
• Transparent pricing through annual percentage rate, fees and total repayment
• Prototype scorecards linking client need, value proposition and delivery requirements

Participants can assess repayment capacity using borrower cash flow and business evidence.

• Household and business cash flows separated before determining repayment capacity
• Sales estimation using inventory turnover, supplier invoices and observed transactions
• Expense analysis covering stock, labour, rent, utilities and household withdrawals
• Cash-flow lending worksheet converting weekly cycles into monthly repayment capacity
• Debt-service ratio tested under reduced sales and higher expense scenarios
• Credit recommendation documented with purpose, risks, mitigants and monitoring triggers

Participants can select and control group-lending approaches for suitable borrower segments.

• Solidarity group structures, joint liability and peer-selection mechanisms
• Village banking models: member savings, internal lending and external capital
• Group formation criteria covering trust, proximity, livelihoods and meeting capacity
• Meeting procedures for attendance, collections, recordkeeping and delinquency follow-up
• Social collateral limitations, coercion risks and borrower protection safeguards
• Individual graduation criteria based on repayment history, business capacity and demand

Participants can assess deposit, payment and liquidity-service requirements for underserved clients.

• Voluntary savings versus compulsory balances and their client-value implications
• Deposit mobilization controls: authorization, reconciliation, custody and interest calculation
• Liquidity forecasting from deposit behaviour, loan disbursements and seasonal withdrawals
• Payment rails: cash, cards, mobile money, transfers and merchant payments
• Agent cash management using float limits, rebalancing and exception reporting
• Safeguarding client funds through segregation, reconciliation and dispute-resolution procedures

Participants can evaluate microinsurance propositions and distribution arrangements for client relevance.

• Risk mapping for health, life, crop, livestock, property and climate shocks
• Microinsurance product terms: premium, sum insured, exclusions, waiting periods
• Mandatory versus voluntary cover assessed for value, consent and affordability
• Claims journeys mapped from notification through documentation, assessment and payment
• Index insurance basis risk, trigger design and client communication requirements
• Bancassurance and partner-agent models with roles, incentives and conduct controls

Participants can select digital channels and agent controls appropriate to target-client behaviour.

• Digital onboarding steps: identification, consent, verification and account activation
• Tiered KYC requirements balanced against anti-money-laundering obligations and access
• USSD, mobile app and assisted channels compared for usability
• Agent selection criteria: location, liquidity, reputation, systems and customer traffic
• Agent monitoring dashboards covering transactions, downtime, complaints and cash-outs
• Digital fraud controls for SIM swaps, social engineering and account takeover

Participants can establish governance and control arrangements for a responsible microfinance operation.

• Board responsibilities for strategy, risk appetite, performance and social mission
• Three-lines model applied to operations, risk oversight and internal audit
• Risk register covering credit, liquidity, operational, conduct and cyber risks
• Delegated lending authorities aligned with loan size, risk grade and expertise
• Segregation of duties across origination, approval, disbursement and collections
• Incident reporting thresholds, root-cause analysis and corrective action tracking

Participants can interpret financial statements and core performance measures for microfinance providers.

• Income statement structure: interest income, fees, funding costs and impairments
• Balance sheet drivers: loan portfolio, deposits, borrowings, equity and cash
• Portfolio yield calculated from interest income and average gross portfolio
• Operating expense ratio compared against average gross loan portfolio
• Operational self-sufficiency and financial self-sufficiency calculation methods
• Benchmark interpretation adjusted for product mix, branch maturity and funding structure

Participants can price inclusive finance products using cost, risk, funding and margin assumptions.

• Cost allocation between products, channels, branches and shared support functions
• Loan pricing formula incorporating funding cost, losses, expenses and margin
• Effective interest rate compared with flat-rate pricing and disclosed charges
• Funds transfer pricing for deposits, borrowings and matched lending maturities
• Maturity gap analysis for liquidity exposure and repricing risk
• Scenario analysis testing rate increases, withdrawals and funding concentration

Participants can monitor delinquency and implement proportionate collections and recovery actions.

• Portfolio at risk calculated by aging bucket and outstanding balance
• PAR30, write-off ratio, rescheduling ratio and recovery rate interpretation
• Vintage analysis tracing repayment performance by disbursement cohort and product
• Early-warning indicators: missed meetings, declining deposits, arrears and complaints
• Collections workflow from reminder contact through restructuring, recovery and write-off
• Fair collections standards prohibiting harassment, coercion and unauthorized asset seizure

Participants can structure an IFRS 9 expected credit loss approach for microfinance portfolios.

• IFRS 9 staging: performing, underperforming and credit-impaired exposures
• Significant increase in credit risk assessed through delinquency and qualitative indicators
• Portfolio segmentation by product, geography, borrower type and risk characteristics
• Probability of default, loss given default and exposure at default
• Forward-looking scenarios incorporating commodity prices, weather and local employment
• Provision governance covering model validation, overlays, documentation and disclosures

Participants can assess services against client-protection and social-performance requirements.

• CERISE+SPTF standards applied to governance, products, treatment and outcomes
• Appropriate product design preventing over-indebtedness and unsuitable refinancing
• Transparent communication of price, terms, penalties, exclusions and client rights
• Privacy controls for personal data, credit records and digital consent
• Complaints mechanisms with accessible channels, escalation timelines and root-cause review
• Outcome measurement tracking resilience, enterprise stability and financial health

Participants can prepare a practical strategy linking target segments, channels, economics and controls.

• Theory of change connecting services, client behaviours and intended outcomes
• Market mapping of providers, infrastructure, regulations and unmet customer needs
• Channel strategy comparing branches, agents, digital journeys and partnerships
• Partnership due diligence covering capabilities, incentives, data access and accountability
• Implementation roadmap with milestones, owners, dependencies and decision gates
• Balanced scorecard measures for outreach, quality, risk, efficiency and sustainability

Participants can build, review and present a complete financial inclusion product and operating plan.

• Target segment evidence synthesized into a defined financial inclusion proposition
• Product specification covering eligibility, terms, pricing, servicing and disclosures
• Cash-flow underwriting approach and repayment-capacity rules documented for approval
• Portfolio, liquidity, conduct and operational risk controls integrated into design
• Financial model estimating volumes, revenue, costs, losses and sustainability
• Client-protection assessment completed against CERISE+SPTF standards and remedial actions
• Implementation plan presented with metrics, governance, timeline and decision requirements