CRAN is:

1. INTRODUCINGCHRISTIAN RURAL AID NETWORK (CRAN) WITH FOCUS ON ITS MICROFINANCE AND VILLAGE ENTERPRISES DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES

2. CRAN is: A rural development NGO established in 1993 with its seat in Cape Coast in the C/R of Ghana. Registered as an NGO (under the Companies Code 1963, Act 179) with (Reg. No: 56925), and also with the Department of Social Welfare (Reg. No. DSW/ 671).

3. CRAN is a member of: Ghana Association of Private Voluntary Organisations in Development (GAPVOD) Ghana Microfinance Institutions Network (GHAMFIN) Association of Microfinance NGOs

4. Our Vision: To see a Ghanaian society in which, poverty and its concomitants including hunger, illiteracy, ignorance and squalor, which characterise the lives of majority of the country’s rural population are substantially reduced if not completely eradicated, leading to the attainment of social justice.

5. Our Mission: To work towards improvement in the quality of life for the rural poor and disadvantaged populations/ communities in a holistic manner (physically, socially, economically and spiritually) with emphasis on the economic and social empowerment of women as well as the right of children to quality formal basic education in a most professional and qualitative manner.

6. Our Main Objectives: Contribute towards social and economic development and improved quality of life for poor rural households & communities with emphasis on women and children within CRAN’s geographical scope of operation. Promote and provide access to quality formal basic education for children within deprived rural communities and by that contributing to bridging the urban-rural, gaps in basic education in Ghana and also as long-term means to poverty reduction.

7. CRAN’s Main Programme Areas: Social Development Programme Microfinance for Development

8. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME: Focuses mainly on the following areas: a) Promotion of quality basic education b) Promotion of vocational & entrepreneurial training for rural households especially women towards self-employable skills acquisition; c) Promotion of village micro-enterprises through the combination of appropriate technologies, entrepreneurial training and microfinance; d) HIV/AIDS prevention education & support for direct and indirect victims of the pandemic; e) Relief programmes for Refugees; f) Support for Village Churches as agents of community development

9. MICROFINANCE FOR DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME CRAN’s Microfinance programme broadly entails: Rural and Informal Sector Microfinance; Extension of Microcredits to rural & peri-urban poor households on both individual and on group basis; Rural savings mobilisation schemes based on the traditional time-tested ‘Susu’ system; Establishment of Village Banks and Microcredit Village Agencies.

10. Geographical Scope of CRAN’s Activities: CRAN has been operating within ten districts across three Regions Western, Central and Volta Regions; in Ghana. The districts are: Central Region Mfantsiman District Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese District Cape Coast District, KEEA District Western Region Shama-Ahanta East District Mpohor Wassa East District Volta Region: Hohoe District Kpando District Jasikan District Kadjebi District

11. MAIN OBJECTIVES OF CRAN’S MICROFINANCE To reach 30,000 poor households with microcredits by the year 2010 and 50,000 households by the year 2015. To ensure that at least 70% of the rural and peri-urban poor who receive microcredits under the programme by 2015 within the various target areas are and remain women. Ensure that CRAN’s Microfinance covers at least five districts each within each of the three target regions of Ghana - Central, Western and Volta Regions where CRAN is currently operating by 2015. CRAN’s Microfinance programme becomes fully self sustainable by 2012 and largely independent of foreign donor funding. Attain a microfinance institutional status that promotes at least 2.5% of clients from subsistence to income generating to micro-enterprise and to small-scale industry yearly staring from 2007. CRAN’s Microfinance programme graduates into a fully-fledged microfinance institution and thereupon becoming a key player in Ghana’s microfinance industry by 2012 Provide entrepreneurial capacity building training and business advisory programme to at least 25% of total registered clients in a year.

12. OUR MICROFINANCE PRODUCTS Short-Term Business Loan (STBL) Duration: Six months. Interest rate: 19% (38% annualised) Long-Term Business Loan (STBL) Duration: Twelve months. Interest rate: 38% Inventory Loans In the form of agricultural and agro-inputs and delivered directly to farmers and agro-processors other than cash. Currently, the inventory loan facility remains a veritable part of CRAN’s Village Enterprises Development Promotion Programme ` (VEDPP).Duration: Twelve months. Interest rate: 20 - 30%

13. OTHER MICROFINANCE RELATED SERVICES Training and Business Advisory services Village Enterprises Development services Micro-Banking services (Village/Community Bank Concept) Voluntary Susu Savings scheme

14. CRAN Microfinance Operating system HQ in Cape Coast approves most loans Hohoe Branch approves all loans in the VR Kpando Unit Kadjebi Unit Abura Unit Swidu Unit Elmina Unit Shama Kedzi Unit CC Castle Unit Clients: Solidarity Groups and some few Individual Loans

15. LOAN DISBURSEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION PROCEDURES Field officers attached to each MF Unit identify and form solidarity groups. A Training and Monitoring Team provides training for the group which covers a period of 4 – 8 weeks to prepare them for the loan. Training and Monitoring Team assists group to complete loan application forms Loan is processed and disbursed to the group/individual members in the group (Group sizes range from 25 to 40 members). All loans disbursed are captured and tracked using our Loan Performer MIS The repayment of Loans is done through clients’ daily savings or group savings. A Recovery Team chases after defaulting loans.

16. Vital Statistics on the current state of CRAN Microfinance (See attached excel sheet)

17. ABOUT CRAN’S VILLAGE ENTERPRISES DEVELOPMENT PROMOTION PROGRAMME (VEDPP) VEDPP is CRAN’s response to realities on the ground which necessitates going a step beyond microfinance i.e. the delivery of credits and savings mobilisation. Aim & Objective of VEDPP To promote increased value added production income generation and employment at the village level for poverty reduction and wealth creation.

18. Key Strategy of the VEDPP VEDPP design and implementation strategy involves the combination of the following: Training for self-employable & entrepreneurial skills acquisition and development; Facilitating access to appropriate rural technologies and technology transfer; and Facilitating access to rural finance through microcredits extension and management.

19. VEDPP Key Strategy Appropriate rural technology transfer Entrepreneurial and self-employable skills training Access to rural finance through microcredits extension

20. Production Organisation under the VEDPPEstablishment of village production companies based on clear division of labour and enterprise management instead of the usual group or individual production units. Specific Areas of Production Intervention under the VEDPP Stepping up agricultural production through various interventions (Block Farming methods etc.). Diversification of agricultural production with non-traditional products like mushrooms, bee-farming, woodlots etc. Provision and/or facilitating access to appropriate technologies for small-scale agro-processing. Facilitating the creation of viable and sustainable village enterprises. Entrepreneurial capacity building and enterprise development for target groups and individuals; Transfer of and access to appropriate technologies for village enterprises and production; Provision of and access to rural finance in the form of micro-credits for target groups.

21. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF CRAN Board of Directors of CRAN Advisory Committee of Experts on Microfinance Executive Management Project Managers/Field Staff Grassroots units as the Direct Beneficiaries

22. MF CAPITALISATION SOURCES

23. PARTICIPATION IN GHANA GOVERNMENT INITIATED AND DONOR FUNDED PROGRAMMES

24. KEY CHALLENGES FACED Inadequate capitalization of the scheme posing threats to profitability and sustainability Interest rate not competitive because our cost of borrowing is high Cost management (MF is labour intensive) Risk management – weak collateral system

25. FUTURE PLANS AND PROJECTIONS FOR CRAN MICROFINANCE Carry out Microfinance Rating by mid-2007. Raise a total capitalisation fund of 2.5milion Euros or 30bn Cedis over the next five years (2007 – 2012) through soft loans and grants etc. To reach out to at least 50,000 clients within the three regions we are operating in by 2012. Transform the MF scheme into a full-fledged Non-Banking Financial Institution by 2012. Float equity shares by 2013

26. AREAS IN WHICH WE NEED SUPPORT Capitalisation funds – in the form of soft or concessionary loans & grants etc. Funds for training of managers and staff of the MF programme – i.e. capacity building. Funds for training of clients. Funds for the acquisition of logistics including vehicles, motorbikes, computers & accessories and others.

27. CONTACT TO CRAN: Address: Christian Rural Aid Network (CRAN), Ghana P.O. Box UC 97, Cape Coast, C/R, GHANA. Tel. +233-42-33572 Fax: +233-42-34218 Mobile: 020 201 9399 E-mail: crangh@cran.org orakucran@yahoo.com Internet: www.cran.org Office Location in Cape Coast: SIC Building Adjacent to Ghana Telecom. Contact to our Volta Regional Office CRAN, Volta Regional Office P.O. Box 472 Hohoe, V/R., GHANA Tel. +233 935 22195 Mobile: 0244 835 624 E-mail: cosbea@yahoo.com Office Location in Hohoe: Adjacent to Shell Filling Station, close to the District Assembly and the Hohoe Central Market.

28. OUR REFERENCES Ghana Association of Voluntary Organisations in Development (GAPVOD), Accra. Ghana Microfinance Institutions Network (GHAMAFIN), Accra. Association of Financial NGOs in Ghana (ASFIN) Deloitte and Touche, Accra Ghana (CRAN’s financial auditors) CRAN Freundeskreis, e.V., Aachen, Germany Deutsche-Afrikanisch Zusammenarbiet (DAZ), Greifswald, Germany.

29. THANK YOU