Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance Supports Individuals and Businesses

The Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance is dedicated to supporting individuals and businesses in need. They provide access to financial services, such as loans and savings accounts, to help people build a better future.

Their microfinance programs are designed to be flexible and adaptable to the unique needs of each client. This approach allows them to reach a wide range of people, from small entrepreneurs to low-income households.

By offering small loans and other financial services, the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance helps individuals and businesses overcome financial obstacles and achieve their goals.

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Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance offers a range of loans and services to support economic development and poverty alleviation in developing countries. Their housing loans provide credit to poor families to restore and upgrade their homes, contributing to genuine improvements in the quality of life.

In Afghanistan, the First MicroFinance Bank (FMFB-A) piloted a habitat improvement product in 2008, developing a housing microfinance loan product with the support of the IFC. As of December 2010, FMFB-A had 5,003 outstanding housing improvement loans.

The agency's SME loans stimulate sustainable employment and promote economic development by providing a mechanism to smooth incomes and enable SMEs to employ and pay monthly salaries. On average, SMEs are responsible for the creation of around 20 full-time and part-time jobs per business.

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AKAM institutions offer loans for the refurbishment and renovation of homes, allowing poor families to restore and upgrade their living conditions.

In Afghanistan, the First MicroFinance Bank (FMFB-A) piloted a habitat improvement product in 2008, with a housing microfinance loan product developed with IFC support.

As of December 2010, FMFB-A had 5,003 outstanding housing improvement loans and an outstanding total housing loan portfolio of US$6,759,010.

This product is available in 21 urban branches, and FMFB-A is now looking at adapting it for rural areas by conducting a rural demand and repayment capacity survey.

The construction advisory services provided consider factors such as site and construction material selection, construction design for disaster mitigation, and material selection for sustainability.

These factors can significantly improve the quality of housing infrastructure, which is often insufficient in both quantity and quality.

Small and medium enterprises can create around 20 full-time and part-time jobs per business, providing the poor with a way to maintain or improve their quality of life.

Gaining access to financial services is a critical step in connecting the poor to a broader economic life and building their confidence.

AKAM's SME lending aims to stimulate sustainable employment and promote economic development and poverty alleviation.

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Agricultural lending is a critical focus area for AKAM, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, Pakistan, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Tajikistan, where rural outreach and agriculture portfolios are significant.

PAMF Madagascar's focus is to expand outreach in rural areas where the microfinance penetration rate is extremely low, currently at around 3.5 percent. In these areas, poverty is high.

62 percent of PAMF-Mada's loans are rural, and agriculture is a mainstay of the economy, employing 80 percent of the population. However, access to agricultural finance is low, particularly among PAMF-Mada's focus areas of Sofia and Itasy.

Small agricultural loans are a key component of PAMF-Mada's lending activity, with 48 percent of loan disbursements in 2010 being for agriculture. To support growth in agriculture more broadly, PAMF Madagascar plans to introduce an agricultural SME product.

In the Kyrgyz Republic, the First MicroCredit Company (FMCC) maintains a strong rural and agricultural focus, with agricultural and livestock loans representing 73 percent of disbursements by number in 2010. The Kyrgyz Republic's agricultural products include cotton, vegetables, and fruits.

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The Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance has a robust organizational structure that enables it to effectively manage its operations and serve the communities it works with. It has a presence in over 15 countries.

With a strong presence in Central Asia, the agency has been able to reach remote and underserved areas, providing financial services to over 1 million clients.

AKAM has a strong network of partners that provide funding and technical assistance to support its microfinance efforts. This support has been crucial in helping AKAM achieve its goals.

The Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance (AKAM) has received support from numerous international institutions and organizations. These partners have played a vital role in AKAM's success.

Some of AKAM's notable partners include the Agence Francaise de Dévéloppement, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the European Investment Bank. These organizations have provided AKAM with the necessary funding and technical expertise to expand its microfinance services.

AKAM's partners have helped the organization establish a presence in countries across Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. This has enabled AKAM to offer microfinance services to underserved populations.

Here is a list of some of AKAM's partners as of 2011:

These partners have helped AKAM establish a strong presence in the microfinance industry, enabling the organization to provide vital financial services to those who need them most.

AKAM was formally inaugurated in February 2005 by Aga Khan IV and the former president of the World Bank, James Wolfensohn.

The agency was created under Swiss law and is based in Geneva, Switzerland. It's governed by an independent board of directors chaired by the Aga Khan.

AKAM brings together the financial services programming of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) at the lower end of the ladder, unifying and consolidating their objectives and principles of development under one institutional umbrella.

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The agency belongs to AKDN's social development branch and operates in both rural and urban areas.

AKAM operates in developing countries including Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Kenya, the Kyrgyz Republic, Madagascar, Mali, Mozambique, Pakistan, Syria, Tajikistan, and Tanzania.

At the end of 2010, AKAM had 156 branches in several regions with 3,120 employees.

The agency managed a loan portfolio of over US$147.7 million in outstanding micro, small, and medium-sized loans to over 287,240 beneficiaries in 13 countries by the end of June 2010.

AKAM operates in a network of banks and microfinance institutions across four continents and six countries, including Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Mali, and Syria.

AKAM's mission involves implementing projects and bringing microfinance institutions to a certain stage of maturity by providing initial capital and technical assistance.

One of the major elements of AKAM's mission is to ensure the evolution and transition of its subsidiaries to diverse shareholding, financial sustainability, and strong institutional capacity.

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AKAM has already ensured this transition for its subsidiaries in Pakistan, Tajikistan, Madagascar, and Kyrgyzstan.

IFC is a member of the World Bank Group and the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets.

IFC invests in private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty.

In the first quarter of 2020, IFC invested USD 22 Billion in private companies and financial institutions in developing countries.

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In East Africa, AKAM's primary focus is on providing loans to microenterprises and small businesses for income-generating activities like small-scale agriculture and retail.

AKAM's East African institutions disbursed about 8,640 loans in 2009.

The value of outstanding loans exceeded US$1.8 million.

45 percent of the loan beneficiaries were women.

Two new branches were opened in Chiure, Mozambique, and Zanzibar, Tanzania, expanding AKAM's presence in the region to 10 branches in three countries: Kenya, Mozambique, and Tanzania.

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