WHAT WE DO IN CALGARY
MONEY, PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT & NEW PARTNERS
To achieve our objectives, we are active in Calgary and elsewhere in sourcing charitable donations, grants and loan funding so we can provide funds to our MFI Partners SERVIGUA and PANA PANA so that they can continue to make small business loans to their poor women entrepreneurial clients to help them grow their businesses.
With increased incomes, these poor entrepreneurs are able to re-invest part of their profits in their businesses, but in addition, they are able to make small improvements to their homes, buy better clothing, food, and healthcare for their families, and pay school fees so that their children can stay in school. These expenditures are spent locally and therefore have a beneficial impact on their local communities.
Over the years, we have designed a monthly reporting process that provides us with the financial and operating information that we need to ensure that loans to our MFI Partners are secure while keeping their staff time involvement as low as possible.
We monitor the monthly performance of our MFI partners and, in particular, their loan portfolios as well as all aspects of their business performances.
Where we can, we make suggestions for improvements to our MFI Partners’ business operations if we see areas that these can be made. We refer to this as providing “mental capital”.
We try to be as flexible and creative as possible in obtaining funds for our MFI Partners to lend to their poor women entrepreneurs by simplifying our oversight structures (which gives us additional time to source donations and other funding) and seeking unusual types and sources of funding in Canada, Central America and elsewhere.
We are in weekly contact with Dr. Francisco Barquero, Advisor to our Board, and with the senior staff of SERVIGUA and PANA PANA . This also helps us to develop a strong relationship with them.