In Latin America, 186 million people live in poverty, according to ECLAC data, and 203 million are excluded from the formal financial system
The activity of the BBVA Microfinance Foundation (BBVAMF) in five Latin American countries impacted 12 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2019, with an annual disbursement by its six entities of more than USD 1,600 million in microcredits to low-income entrepreneurs in Colombia, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Chile and Panama, according to its latest Social Performance Report, consolidating its position as a world leader in development financing, only after the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Financial inclusion and microfinance play a key role in poverty reduction and economic and social advancement. The United Nations 2030 Agenda recognizes this role in a transversal way in several of the 17 SDGs.
The challenge in the region is immense, since 186 million people live in poverty, according to data from the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), and 203 million are excluded from the formal financial system (World Bank). The financial sector plays a key role in development, especially when it supports talented and enterprising people to gain access to finance. This promotes stability, fosters growth and achieves a more equitable distribution of resources and capabilities.
With this activity, according to data from the Social Performance Report, the BBVAMF has managed to reduce poverty by 10% for entrepreneurs in their first year as clients, and up to 41.3% after 4 years.
The Spanish organization, founded in 2007 by BBVA, has been recognized as an international leader in development finance, only after the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). 84.1% of the entrepreneurs served by the BBVAMF, almost one million people, live in vulnerable situations, and 15.2% live in extreme poverty. Through its entities, it offers a full range of financial products and services, as well as training, to more than 2.2 million entrepreneurs.
