Unlocking the Potential: Islamic Finance in the Philippines

“We have Muslim brothers who avail (financial) services but the way they avail (these loans) is against our culture, against our beliefs.” ~Muslim leader, Davao, Mindanao
 
Islam first reached the southern shores of the Philippines during the 14^th century and played a critical role in unifying kinship groups in several Filipino communities. With stronger networks of brotherhood and newfound Islamic faith, these communities were able to resist colonization by Spain and America for over 400 years, preserving their culture and religion. Today, though the majority of Muslim communities are concentrated in the southern portion of the Philippines archipelago, some reside in pockets throughout the islands; Filipino Muslims comprise approximately 5% (4.7 million) of the Filipino population (Roces, 2009).

Recognizing the need for a loan product more suitable to Muslim borrowers, CEVI has recently developed and launched an Islamic Finance product that is being piloted in Davao, Mindanao.

To read more about CEVI's course in expanding outreach to Muslim clients, please visit the Kiva Fellows Blog. 

Bonus Photo!

The first 10 Muslim clients involved in the pilot alongside the local Muslim leader, Chairman of World Vision, and Head of DMI. Photo courtesy of the CEVI Davao Branch.

To Have a Servant’s Heart: The Essence of Customer Service

When you’re in the business of microfinance, you’re in the business of relationship building. Microfinance institutions (MFIs) must rely on a vast network of relationships between stakeholders - clients, lenders, donors, employees, etc – in order to provide financial services to the poor and fulfill their other objectives.

Pastor Boris Joaquin, World Vision’s Director of Publics in Ministry, shared his insight on how to exceed customers’ expectations with Community Economic Ventures, Inc (CEVI) during an intensive workshop. Forty-seven CEVI staff members, including branch managers, area managers, and top management, met at JJ’s Seafood in Tagbilaran City to discuss Customer Service 101.

To continue reading and see pictures from the event, check out my blog post on the Kiva Fellows Blog!

Introducing the latest Kiva Fellows!

Just completed training at Kiva headquarters in San Francisco and it's been quite an intense learning experience. I can't wait to put my skills and knowledge to use once abroad!

KF12 Ready for the field!  Picture compliments of Eric Brandt.

Kiva Fellows, Gabriel Francis and John Murphy (KF12) did a phenomenal job describing our week in their posts '37 New Brushes to Paint the World' and '12th Class Kiva Fellows Training Week Recap', respectively.