Sunday, August 1, 2010

The Need for Transparency | Microfinance Transparency

transparency.orgPromoting Transparent Pricing in the Microfinance Industry
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The Need for Transparency

Most people would agree that transparency is a good thing. But why is it important? Especially in microfinance? Especially in terms of pricing? This section offers a variety of perspectives on the need for transparency in microfinance, including why it has become an issue, how different stakeholders stand to benefit from transparency and what MFTransparency is doing to help build a transparent microfinance industry.

Below you’ll find a list of resources that are useful in understanding the need for transparency. Look through our compilation of articles, presentations, videos and blog posts. All resources have been coded according to their complexity:

  • a green box indicates basic information,
  • a yellow box will provide you with a resource that goes beyond the basics, and
  • a red box is a comprehensive or advanced article on the need for transparency

Use these links to jump directly to what you’re looking for, or simply scroll down to view our full library:

Highlighted Items
  • The Need for Transparency
  • Responsible Microfinance: The Need for Self-Regulating the Practice
  • What the World is Saying About Transparency
  • The Case for Pricing Transparency

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    Articles

    Presentations

    Videos

    From the Blog
     
     

    Articles

    The Need for Transparency (Intro Level) 
    GREAT PLACE TO START: In many ways, microfinance has long been considered a highly transparent industry.While this is true in many respects, it is not so much the case when it comes to pricing. The true price of microfinance products has never really been accurately calculated or reported. Read this paper to find out why, what the implications of this reality are and what the industry is doing to change it. Download

    What the World is Saying About Transparency (Intro Level)
    Is transparency really important to the microfinance industry? Why? What do those outside of the microfinance industry think about transparency? This compilation of quotes offers a variety of perspectives on transparency in microfinance, including statements from microfinance practitioners, journalists, legal experts, academics and many others. Prepare to have some new ideas of your own after reading these. Download

    Presentations

    Why We Need Transparent Pricing in Microfinance  (Intro Level)
    This presentation explores the issue of pricing transparency in microfinance from many perspectives, including history, the media, microfinance institutions and clients. It illustrates why pricing in microfinance has come to be so confusing, how industry stakeholders would benefit from transparent pricing and what can be done to implement transparent pricing practices. View this presentation

    Responsible Microfinance: The Need for Self-Regulating the Practice  (Intermediate Level)
    In this presentation MFTransparency CEO & President Chuck Waterfield explores ways that the industry can begin to self-regulate to promote transparent pricing. This presentation uses many approaches to inspire the microfinance industry to action, even invoking Gandhi’s Seven Deadly Social Sins. A fresh view of this topic, for those already familiar with it. View this presentation

    Videos

    Why Transparency (Intro Level)
    It is one thing to read about the importance of transparency, and quite another to hear about it straight from the mouths of industry practitioners. In this video we have caught a diverse group of microfinance actors discussing their views on transparency. These range from the importance of transparency to a healthy industry, the effectiveness of microfinance in poverty alleviation and upholding the rights of clients. Watch this video

    If No Microfinance (Intermediate Level)
    While it is important to advocate for transparency by elaborating on the benefits, it is equally important (though less uplifting) to explain the dangers of a non-transparent industry. In this video, a range of microfinance industry practitioners offer their views on how a lack of transparency hurts the industry. This includes discussion of how different stakeholders are affected, from investors to clients, citing examples learned from the experiences of the speakers. Watch this video

    From the Blog

    The Case for Pricing Transparency (Intro Level)
    This post introduces a definitive piece of industry research on pricing transparency. Jessica Haeussler, MFTransparency Latin America Regional Associate, writes for the MicroBanking Bulletin on the importance of pricing transparency in microfinance. Combining theory and industry data, this piece provides a strong foundation for understanding pricing transparency in microfinance. Read this post

    Mobile Banking and the Future of Transparency (Intermediate Level)
    What role does technology play in transparency? How is this role different for microfinance from other industries? This post addresses the potential for mobile banking to enhance transparency in the delivery of financial services to the poor. Once you’ve got the basics of transparency in microfinance down, read this post to see how they can be applied. Read this post

    What Does the Data Tell Us? (Advanced Level)
    Using real data for the microfinance industry, this post provides an argument for transparency from a data-driven standpoint. The post tackles some commonly asked questions in microfinance and uses quantitative analysis to assess the ability of various data points to answer them. Does data facilitate transparency or prevent it? Read this post and then judge for yourself.  Read this post

    Useful Links

    Check back in the future for links to information on other websites.

    Suggestions

    If you have suggestions for additional information to post on this page, write to us atresources@mftransparency.org.

    Last 3 posts by Jordan Filko

    This entry was posted on Friday, July 30th, 2010 at 7:42 am and is filed under Need for Transparency, Resources. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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