COVID-19 Coping Strategies for the Microfinance Ecosystem

As the events surrounding COVID-19 unfold, the M-CRIL team is committed to delivering thoughtful analysis and resources that will help the microfinance ecosystem to deal more effectively with the current uncertainty and disruption. To facilitate this, M-CRIL proposes to conduct a series of webinars to bring together the microfinance ecosystem stakeholders in the Asia region.

Webinar Agenda

In recent days, MFIs across Asia have put out messages reiterating their commitment to support their clients, in this unprecedented global crisis.  In this context the issues at hand are:

• What can be done to mitigate the health crisis turning into a financial and food crisis for low income households being serviced by them?
• Apart from initiatives around credit and forbearance on loan repayments, what are the other initiatives that providers can consider rolling out to help their clients and for their own business continuity?    

Topics to be Covered

• Managing Operations and Helping Customers:
  • Innovation/s that can enable business continuity in this unique COVID-19 situation.
  • Alternative communication methods for interaction with customers.
  • New digital initiatives adopted.
  • Managing financial relief to clients.
  • Maintaining communication with staff, staff welfare initiatives.
  • Preserving liquidity to survive.
  • Simple pointers for clients
• Issues for representation to Funders and Regulators/Governments:
  • A moratorium/rescheduling of existing debt funding.
  • Concessional credit lines from development banks.
  • Tax holidays.
  • Other forms of regulatory forbearance.

Follow up webinars (on areas like digital lending, SME Finance, Gig workers etc.) will be organised on emerging issues as the crisis evolves.

Webinar Key Takeaways