Microserfin in the Panamanian context
Microserfin goes along with vulnerable clients who are affected by the income inequality distribution in Panama. At the moment the entity poses a challenge to join together a sustained growth of its operations by improving the services offered to its clients.
Panama is one of the Latin American countries with the highest economic growth (10.7% in 2012). Nevertheless, according to the recent information given by the World Bank, Panama is also one of the countries with the highest inequality levels. The Gini coefficient of the country is 51.2.
Moreover, Panama’s poverty profile shows some characteristics that match with the special social and economic dynamic of the country. Firstly, we need to take into account the sectors that have led the economic growth in the country: finances transport and communication, and all of them are intensive in technology and human resources (none of them requires intensive labour). As a consequence, the profit obtained is found in big cities where these activities are carried out, and as rural areas don't benefit from this growth, they are in a disadvantaged situation.
Secondly, there is an increase in the number of people seeking opportunities to improve their quality of life, due to the high impact of poverty in rural areas (which specially harms indigenous people). For this reason, and as there is an increase in the number of people moving from rural to urban areas, urban poverty is also experiencing an increase.