FINCA Results

Measuring Our Impact

Social Performance Management

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Financial Inclusion

FINCA:
Reaching the Financially Excluded

72% Adult population financially excluded
350,907 41% Female borrowers Outreach to women is highest in Latin America and Africa. The results in Afghanistan are also striking, where over half of our borrowers are female. % #
2,669,933 Total FINCA clients An increasing share of FINCA's customers are micro-savers. Financial inclusion means giving people a full range of services to build their future.
103,792 39% Borrowers in rural areas Excludes Nigeria, Jordan and Haiti. Rural outreach is especially high in Eurasia, led by Kyrgyzstan. % #
853,888 Total FINCA borrowers The outreach of our subsidiaries ranges from tens of thousands in places like Honduras and Jordan, to over 100,000 in Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan and DR-Congo.

Living Standards

FINCA:
Quality of Life

245,292 29% Client homes without water Every FINCA region has clients who lack this basic service, including places like Tajikistan, Honduras and Afghanistan. % #
104,331 12% Client homes without electricity Outside of Africa, Honduras has the highest percentage of borrowers who lack electricity in their homes. % #
497,148 59% Client homes without access to Internet % #
153,347 18% Clients who don’t own their home % #
295,982 35% Head of household with primary education or less The lack of education is particularly notable in Latin America, but other regions are not far behind, especially MESA and Africa. % #

Financial exclusion often goes hand-in-hand with poor living standards. FINCA's borrowers in Africa struggle the most to have a decent quality of life. Over half live in homes without access to clean water, and a third are without electricity.

These problems are not isolated to Africa, however. Our surveys show that access to water, in particular, is a problem that affects clients in every region. Also, nearly a third of FINCA clients live in a household whose main earner has only a primary education or less. This problem is especially severe in Africa and MESA.

Income & Employment

FINCA:
Income & Employment

$3,578 29% Average annual profit Profit is shown as a percent of total sales. % #
2.4 Average # of employees per client enterprise Employees (full-time equivalent) include the owner. Employment is highest in MESA and Africa.
1,659,476 People employed in FINCA-funded enterprises This data covers 72% of our borrowers.
374,672 23% Employees hired due to FINCA loan At any given time, 27% of total employment in our clients' enterprises is directly attributed by them to the expansion of their activities that was enabled by FINCA. Job-creation is the strongest in Eurasia. % #
795,187 48% Wages paid above the poverty line Wages that are above the poverty line are considered a "living wage." % #
Explore FINCA Loan Sectors

We measure FINCA's impact on income and employment through a detailed Enterprise Survey, which captures the cash flow, wages and employment in our clients' businesses. Our surveyors take a detailed count of people working in each enterprise, and clients themselves are asked to estimate how many of them are working due to the loan from FINCA. These results are strongly influenced by the sector of activity -- agriculture, trade, services, livestock and manufacturing -- as shown under "Special Topics," below.

Women’s Empowerment

FINCA:
Empowering Women

350,907 41% Female borrowers Outreach to women is highest in Latin America and Africa. The results in Afghanistan are also striking, where over half of our borrowers are female. % #
115,077 14% Clients with female-headed household % #
245,679 29% Households with female as main earner % #
269,344 38.8% Businesses run by women % #
687,704 36% Women employed by enterprises Avg. #
586,465 37% Jobs created by women This is the total number of employees hired by FINCA's female borrowers. % #

All over the world, we find that the majority of FINCA's female borrowers are the main source of income for their family. Female breadwinners bear a heavy burden, because they normally have to fulfill traditional family responsibilities in addition to running their business. 14% of our borrowers are single mothers. Reaching these women is a priority for FINCA's mission, because they have an enormous impact on the well-being of the whole family, while their climb out of poverty is the steepest.

Women's rate of enterprise ownership is lower than their overall representation within FINCA's client base, particularly in MESA/Pakistan. In part, this is the result of social norms that discourage women's business activities. With some exceptions, especially in Africa,, women's contribution to job-creation is generally undercut by their concentration in economic sectors such as trade, where enterprises tend to employ fewer workers. Nonetheless, the enhanced status that comes with running a business and hiring workers is an important factor in women's social empowerment,

Clients’ Goals

FINCA:
Attaining Business and Personal Goals

Goals Set By FINCA Borrowers
Goals Met By FINCA Borrowers
53,250 8% Start a business % #
387,079 56% Expand a business % #
14,060 2% Invest in education % #
93,043 13% Improve their home % #
39,347 6% Buy an asset % #
34,764 5% Pay down debts % #
44,868 83% Start a business % #
328,807 83% Expand a business % #
10,484 50% Invest in education % #
70,413 79% Improve their home % #
79,209 77% Buy an asset % #
22,404 62% Pay down debts % #

Across the world, our borrowers come to FINCA with specific goals in mind. The majority aim to expand an existing business or to start a new one. After business, home improvements are the next big objective, especially in Africa and Eurasia. FINCA is actively expanding the range of its services to meet these kinds of needs, especially through the financing of household assets such as solar panels and improved cook-stoves. As these services grow and multiply across the network, we can expect more clients to come to FINCA with these needs in mind.

Special Topics

FINCA:
Poverty, Economic Sectors, Jobs and Profits

FINCA Loan Sectors

386,235 45% Trade % #
189,112 22% Services % #
53,196 6% Manufacturing % #
62,584 7% Crops % #
161,926 19% Livestock % #

Profit and Profit/Sales Ratio by Sector

$4,394 23% Trade Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
3,941 31% Services Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$4,994 28% Manufacturing Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$1,773 31% Crops Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$2,289 34% Livestock Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit

Jobs by Sector Due to FINCA Loan

169,722 45% Trade % #
91,393 24% Services % #
32,413 9% Manufacturing % #
22,929 6% Crops % #
58,215 16% Livestock % #

FINCA Stories

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Beating the Odds During COVID-19

FINCA DR Congo client Eugénie Kabeya, a seamstress, has beaten the odds by staying in business despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Find out...
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FINCA Loans Support Guatemalan Weaving

Thanks to FINCA loans, Paula Calabay has been able to find success in the ancient art of weaving and support her two...
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The Impact of Educational Technology

Imelda Mumbi, Julia Wangari and Jane Muthoni all improved their education with the help of Eneza Education's educational technology. Read their stories.
Read Imelda's Story

© 2020 FINCA International

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Contact Our Research Team

© 2020 FINCA International

Visit FINCA.org