BUJUMBURA, May 17th (ABP) – The Vice-President of the Republic of Burundi, Mr Prosper Banzombaza, was present on Monday 13 May at the activities of the 3rd edition of the week dedicated to microfinance in Burundi under the theme “Inclusive finance, a driving force for sustainable and equitable development”, organised by the Network of Microfinance Institutions (RIM) of Burundi, in collaboration with its partners.
The Vice-President of the Republic of Burundi pointed out that that event is being organised at a time when the population has already understood its role in building an emerging Burundi, and that the best way to overcome poverty is to get down to work.
According to him, the Burundian people have understood that “together, everything is possible”. That joint effort has enabled citizens to organise themselves into a cooperative movement to boost the primary and secondary sectors, through the exploitation of land and natural resources, he stressed.
According to Mr Bazombanza, the geographical coverage of local financial institutions is necessary in order to support the entire working population, by promoting the development of the local economy.
working population, by promoting production, competitiveness and solutions to cash flow problems.
For his part, Bernard Désire Ntavumba, Managing Director of RIM in Burundi, said that the event had been organised to enable those involved in microfinance to discuss everything that could help to improve the living conditions of communities.
According to him, microfinance plays an important role in development, as it helps people to save and obtain credit to develop. Those institutions have provided jobs for 3,000 employees working in the 55 microfinance institutions that make up the RIM.
In addition, he said, microfinance institutions (MFIs) contribute to the country’s development because they pay taxes to the Burundi Revenue Office (OBR) and help with elections. What’s more, he said, microfinance seems to promise progress in terms of increased income, reduced vulnerability, access to health care, and so on.
vulnerability, and access to healthcare, education and housing for clients, in that savings help families to build up capital to finance school fees, improve their housing and achieve their goals.
He also pointed out that microfinance institutions play an important role in the country’s development. Their mission is to lend money to people who do not have sufficient guarantees to access the formal banking system. Those same organisations are involved in developing entrepreneurship by financing women’s projects and youth projects.
The Managing Director of CORILAC microfinance, Elius Bizimana, who gave a presentation on the review of the support needs of MFIs in order to become more professional, said that in order for those institutions to become more professional, partners must help to improve the legal and regulatory environment, build the capacity of individuals, bodies and customers, and reduce the cost of credit. He recommended that partners offer rapid financial support without delay and limit the conditions of financial support. He also advised MFI players to express their real needs in order to become more professional and build their competitive edge.
The young people who took part in those activities asked those involved in microfinance institutions to support young graduates who are entrepreneurs by giving them work in their microfinance institutions instead of waiting for those young people to come and take out loans. That will help to reduce unemployment among young Burundians.
Victoria Bizindavyi, a female facilitator who also took part in that activity, asked the microfinance players to work with the agronomists who are on the hills and close to the farmers. Those agronomists will be able to help farmers manage their harvests and repay their microfinance debts.