TOTAL PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT FOR MFIs

The Mindanao Microfinance Council (MMC) aims to contribute significantly to the reduction of poverty in Mindanao. This is the common social goal that each MMC member is committed to achieve.

With this social goal in mind, MMC members have collectively committed to reach one million microfinance clients by the end of 2013 and to make a difference in the lives of poor families by helping them alleviate themselves from poverty through credit and other financial and non-financial services to support their livelihood and small enterprises.

Beyond credit delivery, MMC members have also began delivering supporting services particularly focusing in developing the capabilities of clients and providing business development and community development support.

The ultimate outcome of these efforts is to create more wealth (economic, social, spiritual, intellectual wealth, etc.) for the poor family enabling them to send children to school, provide better nutrition, maintain better health and living conditions, and ensure a better future.

It is also hoped that through the collective efforts of MMC members and partner organizations, we will begin to see an end to poverty in Mindanao. Mindanao is identified as having the most number of poorest regions/provinces in the Philippines. By working together to effectively deliver microfinance, enterprise development support services, and other financial and non-financial services to low-income households, MMC members hope to contribute to the reduction of poverty in the region. A reduction of poverty in Mindanao will bear a significant impact in the over-all efforts at the national level to reduce poverty.

To support this campaign and to achieve the desired outcomes, MMC recognizes the need to build stronger institutions that will deliver finance and capability development programs to the poor.

But the biggest constraint is institutional capacity. If MMC members are to achieve the goal, the need to improve organizational capacities is paramount.

To support its members in their efforts, MMC has launched a project aimed at supporting capacity development with special focus on helping MFIs (as social enterprises) to achieve social objectives (managing social performance) and other institutional objectives under the concept of TOTAL PERFOMANCE MANAGEMENT. The project, Building Resources in Developing Greater Effectiveness of Social- Enterprises or BRIDGES, is designed to help develop institutional capacity focusing on People, Systems, Strategies, Products, Structure, Shared Values.

By assisting MFI members in developing and strengthening their organizations, it is expected that there will be better service delivery and hopefully, the common end of supporting poor families in their efforts to alleviate themselves from poverty can be achieved.

Mindanao Microfinance 2013

This year, 2009, is the beginning of a five year journey to realize a dream... a dream that will hopefully transform the lives of so many poor families in Mindanao.

The Mindanao Microfinance Council, a group composed of leaders from the microfinance sector in Mindanao, are aiming to reach one million families by the year 2013. MMC's quest is not just to reach the target, but also to make a difference in the lives of the families we touch.

This blog hopes to document the story of our journey and to share the insights we have gained along the way, in the hope that this may inspire others to travel with us in this long and less traveled path.