In 2015 Financiera Confianza supported over 58,000 mothers, 65% of whom –37,700– are heads of household; in other words, single mothers who raise their children in single-parent households thanks to their enterprises and to their own hard work on a daily basis.
Coinciding with the celebration of Mother’s Day, Financiera Confianza reported that these data demonstrate that Productive Finance and support for female entrepreneurship contribute to empowering women and reinforcing their role as mothers within their families.
82% of the mothers who are entrepreneurs served by Financiera Confianza from May 2014 to May 2015 are in a situation of vulnerability or poverty. The bank wants to reach out to the most disadvantaged sectors and offer them alternatives for sustainable development so they can improve their income and quality of life.
In the last year, Financiera Confianza served nearly 162,000 women, representing 51% of its total customers. Thanks to the bank’s support, over 22,000 female customers have joined the formal financial system in the last 12 months.
Financiera Confianza is the microfinance institution with the most extensive national rural network in Peru. In 2015 it served over 20,300 women entrepreneurs from rural sectors. One of its programs with the greatest impact on rural sectors is “Ahorro para Todos” (Savings for everyone). This is the first initiative run by the private sector for financial literacy and the promotion of formal savings in rural areas of the country.
The methodology of this program is especially innovative, as it is based on the prior knowledge of the target customers in order to interiorize their living situation, customs and language. The training materials and strategies have been prepared in Quechua, the language spoken in these communities. Since April 2014 over 11,600 people from 80 communities in Apurímac and Cusco have received financial literacy training. Of these, 2,402 decided to open a formal savings account in Financiera Confianza, of whom 81% were mothers.
The group credit “Palabra de Mujer” (“A woman’s word”) helped 50,000 women to advance in 2015
In 2015, the group credit “Palabra de Mujer” helped 50,000 women in several regions to get ahead. This means that over 83,000 women entrepreneurs have now been supported by this product from Financiera Confianza in the last three years.
This group credit is aimed primarily at women in a state of vulnerability or poverty, and contains a significant component of financial literacy training, which further enhances its social impact. 49.3% of the “Palabra de Mujer” customers who remain with Financiera Confianza for at least two years rise up out of poverty.
This project encourages the financial inclusion of women who would not individually be given access to a loan (generally productive) from a bank. It works with groups of between eight and 25 women, who are taught about the benefits of having a formal loan and helped to organize a business plan in line with their income.