FINCA Results

Measuring Our Impact

Social Performance Management

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Latin America

Latin America is FINCA's birthplace. The Village Banking lending methodology was conceived in Bolivia, before spreading throughout South and Central America. The region includes some of the poorest countries in our network. Besides income inequality and crime, they are prone to hurricanes, flooding and earthquakes. Our clients regularly face these challenges with resilience and determination. Credit and savings are important tools to recover from setbacks and to gain a better future.

Explore Latin America Data ↓

Financial Inclusion

Latin America:
Reaching the Financially Excluded

Latin America Guatemala Haiti Honduras
64% Adult population financially excluded
56,650 73% Female borrowers % #
137,502 Total FINCA clients
32,301 42% Borrowers in rural areas Rural outreach is especially high in Ecuador and Guatemala. % #
77,750 Total FINCA borrowers
56% Adult population financially excluded
11,738 56% Female borrowers Second-highest in the world, right after FINCA Haiti. % #
20,821 Total FINCA clients
11,035 53% Borrowers in rural areas Highest outside of Eurasia. % #
20,821 Total FINCA borrowers
Explore Guatemala Data
72% Adult population financially excluded
33,791 89% Female borrowers % #
38,419 Total FINCA clients
15,244 40% Borrowers in rural areas % #
38,111 Total FINCA borrowers
Explore Haiti Data
66% Adult population financially excluded
11,121 59% Female borrowers % #
78,262 Total FINCA clients Honduras has more non-borrowing customers than any other subsidiary in the region.
6,022 32% Borrowers in rural areas % #
18,818 Total FINCA borrowers
Explore Honduras Data

Financial exclusion is high in Latin America, especially for women and the poor. Only 37 percent of woemn have access to a bank account in the countries where we work, compared to 46 percent of men. That figure falls even further to 27 percent for those at the bottom of the ladder.

Three out of four borrowers are women, putting Latin America in the lead on female outreach. In addition, Guatemala and Ecuador also have significant rural outreach, while Honduras and Nicaragua are operating in more urban markets. Most of FINCA's subsidiaries in Latin America are medium-sized, with 25 to 50 thousand borrowers. Nevertheless, three of them -- Honduras, Ecuador and Nicaragua -- have been licensed to take deposits, which allows them to offer a wider range of services beyond credit. In fact, savers outnumber borrowers by more than 2 to 1 in Ecuador and Honduras, showing that there is robust demand for services that allow people to safely store and accumulate their savings.

View All Financial Inclusion Data

Living Standards

Latin America:
Quality of Life

Latin America Guatemala Haiti Honduras
13,723 18% Client homes without water % #
22,026 28% Client homes without electricity % #
39,151 50% Client homes without access to Internet % #
18,334 24% Clients who don’t own their home % #
49,799 64% Head of household with primary education or less % #
3,123 15% Client homes without water % #
2,082 10% Client homes without electricity % #
8,745 42% Client homes without access to Internet % #
3,123 15% Clients who don’t own their home % #
16,011 77% Head of household with primary education or less This is the second-highest percentage in the world, just after Afghanistan. % #
Explore Guatemala Data
4,954 13% Client homes without water % #
14,863 39% Client homes without electricity % #
20,809 55% Client homes without access to Internet % #
12,577 33% Clients who don’t own their home % #
20,923 55% Head of household with primary education or less % #
Explore Haiti Data
5,645 30% Client homes without water % #
5,081 27% Client homes without electricity % #
9,597 51% Client homes without access to Internet % #
2,635 14% Clients who don’t own their home % #
12,865 68% Head of household with primary education or less % #
Explore Honduras Data

FINCA's clients in Latin America face serious challenges in their daily life. In Honduras, about a third of our borrowers lack water and/or electricity in their homes. In the whole region, nearly half of our clients live in a household where the main earner has less than a secondary education. In Guatemala, this figure is over 75 percent, placing it right ahead of Afghanistan, a country which has been at war for most of the last several decades.

These results sharpen the focus on improving the educational attainment and income-earning potential of our clients' children, so they can break the cycle of poverty. FINCA's mission is to provide tools and financial resources to these families -- especially the mothers -- so they can provide a basic quality of life that will foster this change from one generation to the next.

View All Living Standards Data

Income & Employment

Latin America:
Income & Employment

Latin America Guatemala Haiti Honduras
$3,161 28% Average annual profit Haiti and Honduras only. Nicaragua to be included later in 2018, % #
2.5 Average # of employees per client enterprise Haiti, Honduras and Nicaragua only
141,206 People employed in FINCA-funded enterprises Haiti, Honduras and Nicaragua only.
39,494 27% Employees hired due to FINCA loan Haiti, Honduras and Nicaragua only. % #
36,460 26% Wages paid above the poverty line Haiti, Honduras and Nicaragua only. % #

No data has been collected yet for this indicator in Guatemala.

The support of FINCA donors is vital to our efforts to understand our clients and better serve them. Please Donate to support this important work.

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Explore Guatemala Data
$1,799 22% Average annual profit % #
2.7 Average # of employees per client enterprise
102,835 People employed in FINCA-funded enterprises
31,908 31% Employees hired due to FINCA loan % #
24,680 24% Wages paid above the poverty line % #
Explore Haiti Data
$5,920 40% Average annual profit % #
2.0 Average # of employees per client enterprise
38,371 People employed in FINCA-funded enterprises
7,586 20% Employees hired due to FINCA loan % #
11,780 31% Wages paid above the poverty line % #
Explore Honduras Data

Explore FINCA Loan Sectors

FINCA has completed its Enterprise Survey in Haiti, Honduras and Nicaragua. The data we have so far shows that Latin America is very close to the global average in most employment and income indicators. The typical FINCA client employs 2.5 people in her business, including herself. A quarter of this employment is due to the loan from FINCA. Profits comprise about 30 percent of total sales. Competition is very stiff, however, so the vast majority of paid workers are earning wages below the national poverty line. Many of our Latin American clients are themselves quite poor, and their businesses are usually a means of surviving under tough circumstances.

View All Income & Employment Data

Women’s Empowerment

Latin America:
Empowering Women

Latin America Guatemala Haiti Honduras
56,650 73% Female borrowers % #
15,687 20% Clients with female-headed household % #
34,160 44% Households with female as main earner % #
44,801 78.7% Businesses run by women % #
73,188 54% Women employed by enterprises Avg. #
115,557 81% Jobs created by women % #
11,738 56% Female borrowers Second-highest in the world, right after FINCA Haiti. % #
11,738 56% Female borrowers Second-highest in the world, right after FINCA Haiti. % #
1,964 9% Clients with female-headed household % #
4,910 24% Households with female as main earner Guatemala is exceptional in that most of our female clients are secondary earners. % #
Explore Guatemala Data
33,791 89% Female borrowers % #
33,791 89% Female borrowers % #
9,282 24% Clients with female-headed household % #
20,538 54% Households with female as main earner % #
31,365 82.3% Businesses run by women % #
44,209 43% Women employed by enterprises Avg. #
90,289 88% Jobs created by women % #
Explore Haiti Data
11,121 59% Female borrowers % #
11,121 59% Female borrowers % #
4,441 24% Clients with female-headed household % #
8,712 46% Households with female as main earner % #
13,436 71.4% Businesses run by women Note that this is higher than the number of female borrowers, because the data are from an Enterprise survey, which is done separately from the household survey. % #
28,980 76% Women employed by enterprises Avg. #
25,268 66% Jobs created by women % #
Explore Honduras Data

FINCA subsidiaries in Latin America excel in reaching women, most of whom are the primary breadwinner in their households. In Nicaragua and Honduras, about half of these women are also single parents who carry the full burden of their family's well-being. By contrast, our clients in Guatemala are living in more traditional rural families and contributing supplementary income to their household.

Whatever their family situation, virtually all of the women in Latin America are running their own enterprises. In other regions, it is relatively more common for men to be involved in our clients' businesses. Unsurprisingly, Latin America is the only region in which the employees in our clients' firms are also mostly women, showing that female entrepreneurs can a driving force in creating jobs for other women.

View All Women’s Empowerment Data

Clients’ Goals

Goals Set By FINCA Borrowers
Goals Met By FINCA Borrowers
Latin America Guatemala Haiti Honduras
5,075 9% Start a business % #
33,208 58% Expand a business % #
651 1% Invest in education % #
6,973 12% Improve their home % #
2,632 5% Buy an asset % #
2,920 5% Pay down debts % #

No data has been collected yet for this indicator in Guatemala.

The support of FINCA donors is vital to our efforts to understand our clients and better serve them. Please Donate to support this important work.

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Explore Guatemala Data
2,401 6% Start a business % #
26,906 71% Expand a business % #
343 1% Invest in education % #
2,096 6% Improve their home % #
76 0% Buy an asset % #
1,715 5% Pay down debts % #
Explore Haiti Data
2,674 14% Start a business % #
6,302 33% Expand a business % #
308 2% Invest in education % #
4,877 26% Improve their home % #
2,556 14% Buy an asset % #
1,205 6% Pay down debts % #
Explore Honduras Data
Latin America Guatemala Haiti Honduras
4,343 86% Start a business % #
24,334 74% Expand a business % #
584 89% Invest in education % #
5,192 65% Improve their home % #
2,025 26% Buy an asset % #
1,452 47% Pay down debts % #

No data has been collected yet for this indicator in Guatemala.

The support of FINCA donors is vital to our efforts to understand our clients and better serve them. Please Donate to support this important work.

DONATE
2,110 88% Start a business % #
19,292 72% Expand a business % #
305 89% Invest in education % #
1,193 57% Improve their home % #
0 0% Buy an asset % #
657 38% Pay down debts % #
Explore Haiti Data
2,233 84% Start a business % #
5,042 80% Expand a business % #
279 90% Invest in education % #
3,999 82% Improve their home % #
2,025 79% Buy an asset % #
795 66% Pay down debts % #
Explore Honduras Data

Each borrower comes to FINCA with a unique goal in mind. In Haiti, most of our clients are focused on expanding their businesses. Meanwhile, in Honduras, clients are striving for a wider range of goals, including improving their home, and purchasing assets.

Nicaragua's client survey is presently in the field -- check back in the fall of 2018 to see the results.

View All Clients’ Goals Data

Business Activities and Profit

FINCA Loan Sectors

Latin America Guatemala Haiti Honduras
56,643 73% Trade % #
11,288 15% Services % #
6,081 8% Manufacturing % #
0 0% Crops % #
3,266 4% Livestock % #
- 0% Trade % #
- 0% Services % #
- 0% Manufacturing % #
- 0% Crops % #
- 0% Livestock % #
Explore Guatemala Data
32,928 86% Trade % #
3,659 10% Services % #
1,258 3% Manufacturing % #
0 0% Crops % #
0 0% Livestock % #
Explore Haiti Data
8,547 45% Trade % #
4,606 24% Services % #
3,195 17% Manufacturing % #
0 0% Crops % #
2,391 13% Livestock % #
Explore Honduras Data

Profit and Profit/Sales Ratio by Sector

Latin America Guatemala Haiti Honduras
$3,466 28% Trade Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
3,840 30% Services Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$3,147 35% Manufacturing Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$0 0% Crops Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$2,141 15% Livestock Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$0 0% Trade Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
0 0% Services Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$0 0% Manufacturing Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$0 0% Crops Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$0 0% Livestock Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
Explore Guatemala Data
$1,595 21% Trade Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
3,413 27% Services Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$2,810 33% Manufacturing Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$0 0% Crops Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$0 0% Livestock Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
Explore Haiti Data
$7,256 40% Trade Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
4,706 37% Services Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$3,830 40% Manufacturing Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$0 0% Crops Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
$6,477 46% Livestock Profit/sales ratio Avg. profit
Explore Honduras Data

Jobs by Sector Due to FINCA Loan

Latin America Guatemala Haiti Honduras
28,710 73% Trade % #
6065 15% Services % #
3,210 8% Manufacturing % #
0 0% Crops % #
1,509 4% Livestock % #
- 0% Trade % #
0 0% Services % #
- 0% Manufacturing % #
- 0% Crops % #
- 0% Livestock % #
Explore Guatemala Data
25,829 81% Trade % #
3977 12% Services % #
2,103 7% Manufacturing % #
0 0% Crops % #
0 0% Livestock % #
Explore Haiti Data
2,882 38% Trade % #
2088 28% Services % #
1,108 15% Manufacturing % #
0 0% Crops % #
1,509 20% Livestock % #
Explore Honduras Data

Latin America Stories

Annesse Aristild and Kerlande Toussaint and their youngest child in front of their school in Gonaives, Haiti

Tenacity and Courage Ensure that Kids Get an Education

Kerlande Toussaint and her husband have proven that with tenacity and courage that they can thrive in the face of adversity. Read...
Read Kerlande's Story
Paula Calabay and her two daughters

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...
Read Paula's Story
Nicolasa Sacay weaving on her loom

Weaving a Better Future

Nicolasa lost her mother when she was young and grew up in poverty. Today she is weaving a better future for her...
Read Nicolasa's Story

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