Download or read book Increasing Access to Rural Finance in Bangladesh written by Aurora Ferrari and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2008 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since the mid-1990s, Bangladesh's banking sector has grown considerably. Despite the boom and the government's efforts to increase access in rural areas, rural financial markets have shrunk in relative terms. As a result, access to finance by micro, small, and medium-size enterprises and marginal, small, and medium-size farmers - the "missing middle" - remains limited, which is significant because these groups are the engines of growth in rural Bangladesh in terms of employment, contribution to GDP, and prospects for future growth.

Download or read book The Global Findex Database 2017 written by Asli Demirguc-Kunt and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2018-04-19 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 2011 the World Bank—with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation—launched the Global Findex database, the world's most comprehensive data set on how adults save, borrow, make payments, and manage risk. Drawing on survey data collected in collaboration with Gallup, Inc., the Global Findex database covers more than 140 economies around the world. The initial survey round was followed by a second one in 2014 and by a third in 2017. Compiled using nationally representative surveys of more than 150,000 adults age 15 and above in over 140 economies, The Global Findex Database 2017: Measuring Financial Inclusion and the Fintech Revolution includes updated indicators on access to and use of formal and informal financial services. It has additional data on the use of financial technology (or fintech), including the use of mobile phones and the Internet to conduct financial transactions. The data reveal opportunities to expand access to financial services among people who do not have an account—the unbanked—as well as to promote greater use of digital financial services among those who do have an account. The Global Findex database has become a mainstay of global efforts to promote financial inclusion. In addition to being widely cited by scholars and development practitioners, Global Findex data are used to track progress toward the World Bank goal of Universal Financial Access by 2020 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The database, the full text of the report, and the underlying country-level data for all figures—along with the questionnaire, the survey methodology, and other relevant materials—are available at www.worldbank.org/globalfindex.

Download or read book Increased access to finance stakeholder consultation workshop Final report written by Hossain, Shawkat and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2021-03-04 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On September 18, 2020, USAID requested IFPRI to conduct 15 stakeholder consultations on three thematic areas across five districts in the Feed the Future Zone of Influence (ZOI) and Zone of Resilience (ZOR): Barishal, Cox’s Bazar, Dhaka, Jashore, and Khulna. The thematic areas are: (1) Increased Access to Finance, (2) Commercialization of Oilseeds and Pulses, and (3) Commercialization of Agricultural Research and Biotechnology. IFPRI agreed to conduct these stakeholder consultations and, on October 21, 2020, USAID approved IFPRI’s Increased Access to Finance concept note.

Download or read book Bringing Finance to Pakistan s Poor written by Tatiana Nenova and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2009-11-13 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although access to financing in Pakistan is expanding quickly, it is two to four times lower than regional benchmarks. Half of Pakistani adults, mostly women, do not engage with the financial system at all, and only 14 percent have access to formal services. Credit for small- and medium-size enterprises is rationed by the financial system. The formal microfinance sector reaches less than 2 percent of the poor, as opposed to more than 25 percent in neighboring countries. Yet it is the micro- and small businesses, along with remittances, that help families escape the poverty trap and participate in the economy. 'Bringing Finance to Pakistan s Poor' is based on a pioneering and comprehensive survey and dataset that measures the access to financial products by Pakistani households. The survey included 10,305 households in all areas of the country, excluding the tribal regions. The accompanying CD contains summary statistics. The authors develop a picture of access to and usage of financial services across the country and across different population groups, and they identify policy and regulatory priorities. Reform measures in Pakistan have been timely, but alone are not enough; financial institutions have lagged behind in adopting technology, segmenting customer bases, diversifying products, and simplifying processes and procedures. Gender bias and low levels of financial literacy remain barriers, as is geographical remoteness. However, the single strongest cause of low financial access is lack of income not location, education, or even gender. 'Bringing Finance to Pakistan s Poor' will be of great interest to readers working in the areas of business and finance, economic policy, gender and rural development, and microfinance.

Download or read book Improving Access to Finance for India s Rural Poor written by Priya Basu and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2006-01-01 with total page 152 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Annotation This book examines the current level and pattern of access to finance for India's rural households, evaluates various approaches for delivering financial services, analyzes what lies behind the lack of adequate financial access, and identifies what it would take to improve access to finance.

Download or read book Connecting the Disconnected written by Cecile T. Niang and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2013-03-12 with total page 103 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presenting qualitative survey findings, this book highlights opportunities and challenges in increasing the use of financial services by urban and rural households in Bhutan. It explores how different demographic groups save, borrow, send remittances, and insure themselves and what this means for services that could better meet their needs.

Download or read book Fighting Poverty with Microcredit written by Shahidur R. Khandker and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 1998 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With increasing assistance from the World Bank and other donors, microfinance is emerging as an instrument for reducing poverty and improving the poor's access to financial services in low-income countries. Providing the poor with access to financial services is one of many ways to help increase their incomes and productivity. In many countries, however, traditional financial institutions have failed to provide this service. Microcredit and cooperative programs fill this gap. They provide credit through social mechanisms such as group-based lending to reach the poor and other clients, including women, who lack access to formal financial institutions. Their purpose is to help the poor become self-employed and thus escape poverty. This book examines the experiences of the Grameen Bank, the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee, and the Bangladesh Rural Development Board's Rural Development Project-12 in order to quantify the potential and limitations of microcredit programs as an instrument for reducing poverty and delivering financial services to the poor. A copublication of the World Bank and Oxford University Press.

Download or read book Bangladesh Rural Infrastructure Strategy Study written by and published by University Press Limited. This book was released on 1996 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Report of seminars held in Dhaka during 1994 & 1996.

Download or read book Migrant Remittances in South Asia written by M. Rahman and published by Springer. This book was released on 2014-11-25 with total page 318 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume provides theoretical treatments of remittance on how its development potential is translated into reality. The authors meticulously delve into diverse mechanisms through which migrant communities remit, investigating how recipients engage in the development process in South Asia.

Download or read book Promoting Agrifood Sector Transformation in Bangladesh written by Mansur Ahmed and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2021-05-30 with total page 125 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Dietary patterns are changing in Bangladesh, and the demand for diverse, safe, and nutritious food is growing. To meet this additional demand, productive diversification in agriculture, and modernization along the agri-food value chain are needed.

Download or read book Historical Dictionary of the World Bank written by Sarah Tenney and published by Scarecrow Press. This book was released on 2013-10-30 with total page 455 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This second edition of the Historical Dictionary of the World Bank shows the substantial progress the Bank has made, this mainly through the dictionary section with concise entries on its component institutions, related organizations, its achievements in various fields, some of the major projects and member countries, and its various presidents. The introduction explains how the Bank works while the chronology traces the major events over nearly 70 years. Meanwhile, the list of acronyms reminds us just who the main players are. And the bibliography directs readers to useful internal documentation and outside studies.

Download or read book Building Inclusive Financial Systems written by Michael S. Barr and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2007-11-01 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Broad-based and inclusive financial systems significantly raise growth, alleviate poverty, and expand economic opportunity. Households, small enterprises, and the rural poor often have difficulty obtaining financial services for a multitude of reasons, including transaction costs, perceived risk, inadequate infrastructure, and information barriers. Yet many financial institutions are now making profitable inroads into underserved markets through formal banking, investment in equities, venture capital, postal banks, and microfinance. Access to Finance addresses the challenges of making financial systems more inclusive, emulating successful ventures in new markets, and utilizing technologies and government policies to support the expansion of financial access. The contributors examine many dimensions of financial access, including: • Measuring financial access • Understanding the impact of expanded access • Examining alternative institutional models • Exploring new technologies and information infrastructure • Evaluating government policies toward outreach.

Download or read book Macroeconomics agriculture and food security written by Díaz-Bonilla, Eugenio and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2015-10-27 with total page 644 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why write a book on macroeconomic policies and their links to agriculture and food security in developing countries? The food price spikes of the years just prior to 2010 and the economic, political, and social dislocations they generated refocused the attention of policymakers and development practitioners on the agricultural sector and food security concerns. But even without those traumatic events, the importance of agriculture for developing countries—and for an adequate functioning of the world economy— cannot be denied. First, although declining over time, primary agriculture still represents important percentages of developing countries’ overall domestic production, exports, and employment. If agroindustrial, transportation, commercial, and other related activities are also counted, then the economic and social importance of agriculture-based sectors increases significantly. Furthermore, large numbers of the world’s poor still live in rural areas and work in agriculture. Through the links via production, trade, employment, and prices, agricultural production is also crucial for national food security. Second, it has been shown that agriculture in developing countries has important growth and employment multipliers for the rest of the economy, and agriculture seems to have larger positive effects in reducing poverty than growth in other sectors. Third, agriculture is not only important for individual developing countries, but it has global significance, considering the large presence of developing countries in world agricultural production and the increasing participation in international trade of those products (these three points will be covered in greater detail in Chapter 1).

Download or read book Access to finance for forest and farm producer organisations FFPOs written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2018-12-14 with total page 97 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Forest landscapes are inhabited by approximately 1.5 billion people. The aggregate gross annual value of these smallholder producers approaches US$1.3 trillion. Adding value to that production, through financial investment, will be key to delivering the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Therefore, access to finance is an important issue. The Forest and Farm Facility (FFF) commissioned this scoping paper to assess what might be done to improve access to finance. Organisation of forest and farm producers allows finance to be channelled toward valueadded investments. But the motivation to form forest and farm producer organisations (FFPOs) varies with context, from the desire to secure resource rights for Indigenous peoples in the forest core, to the desire to strengthen economic scale efficiencies in periurban forest product processing industries. The scale and type of finance needs vary and span enabling investments (grants or concessional loans)through to asset investments (market-rate capital that requires a return). Access to finance for FFPOs requires tailored approaches. For FFPOs, enabling investments in four key areas are needed to create the conditions and necessary track record to attract asset investment: (i) secure commercial rights; (ii) strong organisation for scale; (iii) appropriate technical extension; and (iv) fair market access and business incubation. Enabling investments of this sort make FFPO businesses bankable and affords them access to finance.

Download or read book Agricultural Value Chain Finance written by Calvin Miller and published by Practical Action Publishing. This book was released on 2010 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: `This is a "must read" for anyone interested in value chain finance.---Kenneth Shwedel, Agricultural Economist --Book Jacket.

Download or read book Making Markets More Inclusive written by K. McKague and published by Springer. This book was released on 2014-07-24 with total page 377 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Most studies of doing business at the "bottom of the economic pyramid" focus on viewing the poor as consumers, as micro-entrepreneurs, or as potential employees of local companies. Almost no analysis focuses on the poor as primary producers of agricultural commodities a striking omission given that primary producers are by far the largest segment of the working-age population in developing economies. Making Markets More Inclusive bridges the management literature with original research on agricultural value chains in developing and emerging economies. This exciting work is the first to delve into the skills, capabilities, strategies and approaches needed for inclusive value chain development. McKague shows how NGOs and companies can connect poor producers in developing economies with the right markets to better create social and economic impact. He also analyzes one of the leading agricultural value chain initiatives in the world, which is being replicated by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in several different value chains in Malawi, Tanzania, Ghana, India, and Mali. Want more? Check out these compelling videos, which provide a glimpse into the stories and examples used throughout the book. Video Trailer for Making Markets More Inclusive. Farmer Training. Kallani Rani increased the productivity of her cows, become a cattle feed seller in her village (Chapter 6), and opened a fresh milk canteen in her local market (Chapter 7). She now trains other women farmers and works to improve opportunities for women in her community (Chapter 5). Animal Health Care Services. Asma Husna trained to be an animal health worker with CARE to provide important animal health services and education to local farmers on a fee-for-service basis (Chapter 6). Cattle Feed Shops. Fulera Akter started a business as a cattle feed seller after demand for nutritional animal feed grew due to farmers' improved knowledge of nutrition (Chapter 6). Savings Groups. Coauthor Muhammad Siddiquee, the Coordinator of Agriculture and Value Chain Programs at CARE Bangladesh, discusses the value of farmer savings groups (Chapter 6). Milk Collection. Sarothi Rani became a milk collector to earn an improved income for her family and provide an important service to other dairy farmers in her community (Chapter 7). Digital Fat Testing. Introducing digital fat testing machines into the dairy value chain helped reward farmers for making investments in producing higher quality milk, as well as ensuring transparent and timely payments (Chapter 7). Microfranchising. Supporting agricultural input shop owners with training, relationships to suppliers, common branding, and standardized customer services improves the productivity of smallholder farmers and the profitability of shops (Chapter 12). Bangladesh Dairy Value Chain Learning. Reflections from some of the 40 CARE staff from 17 countries who came to Bangladesh to learn from the experience of the dairy value chain project (Chapter 15).

Download or read book Access to Financial Services in Brazil written by Anjali Kumar and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2005 with total page 698 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is an increasing awareness that access to financial services can contribute to economic growth and poverty reduction. This study focuses on the delivery of financial services in Brazil, one of the world's most important emerging financial markets. It examines different aspects of financial service provision, and explores approaches to address problems of financial exclusion. Topics discussed include: microfinance schemes; private banking; rural finance systems; institutional infrastructure; and the role of government policy.