PURPOSE
The Micro-Credit Program aims to provide the poor, ethnic women in rural areas and vulnerable groups with access to financial resources for production and solving difficult problems in life. Not only that, the program also aims to create and raise a sense of collective responsibility, savings awareness, and effective financial use for the poor.
DIRECTIONS
The goal of the program is: "poor people can help each other escape poverty". The program is not based on a commercial platform but is mainly social. However, the annual income generated from program activities becomes extremely important in promoting sustainable development.
The program helps participants learn to save in groups; The contributions of many people can help group members have a certain amount of capital when needed. The way of participating in groups creates flexibility but is extremely disciplined. The program also supports ethnic people with some investment capital to avoid early loans, thanks to which the economy gradually improves.
HOW TO DO IT
The microcredit program is implemented by forming savings groups consisting of women (8-12 people/group). Each group will elect a group leader and a deputy group leader to be in charge of monitoring, synthesizing savings and keeping accounts of group members. Group members must be responsible for each other and have full authority to decide which members belong to their group. Each month, each person saves about 30,000 VND (1,000 VND per day). After a period of saving, participating members can borrow money from their savings in an emergency at an interest rate set by the group. A member can only borrow when all others in the group agree. The group's profits for the year will be used according to the group's general decision.
When group members contribute to savings regularly, they can borrow additional support from funds sponsored by benefactors. Support loans are only used to invest in production and are not allowed to be used for any other purpose. Everyone is responsible for encouraging other members to repay the loan amount (with an interest rate of 0.6%/month), which is the condition for the group to continue to borrow in the next period.
The model is only successful when everyone follows group discipline: group meetings and regular savings contributions, sharing production experiences, savings experiences, sharing life circumstances, being responsible in borrowing/repaying of group members, each member has a voice, has the right to make decisions... Therefore, in addition to the goal of increasing income and reducing premature loans, the program also has a social impact. Women will feel valued, their voices heard and they will be confident in their ability to help themselves and others escape poverty.
The micro-credit program has been implemented by the Social Charity Committee - Caritas Dalat since 2008 in some districts of Lam Dong province. By 2021, the program is supporting 720 members who are ethnic minority women's groups, several men's groups and groups of persons with disabilities in Don Duong, Di Linh, Dam Rong, Lac Duong, Bao Lam.
