AMUCSS, México ALPIMED, El Salvador ASOMI, El Salvador ASOMIF, Nicaragua COPEME, Perú

1. AMUCSS, México ALPIMED, El Salvador ASOMI, El Salvador ASOMIF, Nicaragua COPEME, Perú FINRURAL, Bolivia KNFP, Haití PROCAJA, Panamá PROMUC, Perú REDIMIF, Guatemala RFR, Ecuador REDMICROH, Honduras REDCOM, Costa Rica RED FASCO, Guatemala EMPRENDER, Colombia KATALYSIS, Honduras ABCRED, Brasil RADIM, Argentina MICROFINANZA, Chile COLMENA MILENARIA, México “Local Capacity Building for Measuring and Monitoring Social Performance in Latin America and the Caribbean” Fabiola Céspedes- SP Regional Coordinator Madrid, June 2009

2. About us Integrated by networks and MFIs, our institution promotes and enables inclusive Rural Financial Services Systems, both financially and socially sustainable, through microfinance and peasant organizations. We are composed of 20 networks from 15 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. These include more than 400 institutions with 3 million clients approximately. Since the 2007 administration, it has been a priority to promote SP through the program: “Local Capacity Building for Measuring and Monitoring Social Performance in Latin America and the Caribbean”.

3. Why and how to promote social performance? • Some questioning about the social mission of the MFI in the region and wrongful interpretation about their role • An evolution from tendencies prioritizing sound financial performance to an integral assessment (SP and FP balance) • MFIs identify the need to incorporate tools and strategies to measure, monitor and evaluate their social goals Legitimize their MISSION • Creating and strengthening local and institutional capacities by involving networks, in order to enable self-management of SP measurement, monitoring and evaluation processes • Assessing SP best practices and promoting tools for its management and dissemination • Promoting direct involvement of networks and MFIs in the design and/or validation of tools in order to assure their suitability and cost-effectiveness FORO LAC FR SP PROGRAM

4. Strategies, actions and main results

5. Challenges, problems and lessons learned PROBLEMS LESSONS LEARNED • Networks are key objective players to guide MFIs in adopting adequate, sustainable, and cost-effective strategic and operational decisions – Avoiding the marketization of these processes • Training programs need to be established permanently through coordination of actors Confusion between SP theoretical and practical frameworks; and links with other areas MFIs consider monitoring / assessment tools require strengthening • Practitioners – through their networks – should be involved in the design and validation of tools • With a common conceptual base, it is fundamental for SPI monitoring to incorporate an internal management perspective and comparison / appraisal criteria adjusted to context • Support to networks should not be limited to tool testing, but should consider strengthening their operational capacity in order to consolidate a sustainable and own mechanism to promote SP Limited operational capacity of national networks Regional networks have a fundamental role in defining trends and processes, reaching focus agreements, promoting common platforms to validate tools, training and exchange, and dissemination of experiences and lessons learned.

6. Future Plans To continue strengthening networks’ local and institutional capacities through a Fund that supports the design / validation and implementation of SP tools To extend the implementation of SPIs, supporting their contextualization according to countries and types of MFIs To develop / validate financial and social performance assessment tools by promoting a balanced appraisal of MFI intervention To consolidate common platforms (information systems, training, communication and dissemination) that enable networks to effectively promote SP and to MFIs to cost-effectively measure, assess and monitor their social mission To strengthen strategic and operational links between SP and other management areas

7. AMUCSS, México ALPIMED, El Salvador ASOMI, El Salvador ASOMIF, Nicaragua COPEME, Perú FINRURAL, Bolivia KNFP, Haití PROCAJA, Panamá PROMUC, Perú REDIMIF, Guatemala RFR, Ecuador REDMICROH, Honduras REDCOM, Costa Rica EMPRENDER, Colombia KATALYSIS, Honduras ABCRED, Brasil Thanks… www.forolacfr.org www.desempenosocial.org