CAF supports microfinance project in Peru

Lima, Nov. 6, 2012.- CAF –development bank of Latin America– and the Peruvian Federation of Municipal Savings and Credit Unions (FEPCMAC, by its Spanish acronym) signed a technical cooperation agreement, under which the financial institution will provide resources to enable municipal credit unions to offer a microsavings product especially designed for young people, which incorporates the vision of the country’s future entrepreneurs.

CAF Country Director in Peru Eleonora Silva Pardo said the project was expected to benefit more than 2,400 young people, with the goal of setting the foundations for the nation’s future entrepreneurs. The project’s full name is “Strengthening Municipal Savings and Credit Unions to offer savings products to low-income populations in Peru’s rural areas, supporting the development of financial literacy among high school students.”

“Through this project, CAF continues to support the development of microfinance in the region, on this opportunity through the strengthening of Municipal Saving Unions in Peru so that they can offer an innovative savings product for low-income youth in rural and urban areas, inserting them in business models and promoting financial inclusion,” Pardo said.

FEPCMAC President Father Edmundo Hernández Aparcana pointed out the importance of promoting a savings culture in the country, saying that financial inclusion is a priority for the Municipal Savings and Credit Unions (CMAC) since their creation 30 years ago. He added that the CMACs are focused on analyzing various financial products and services to promote and attract youth’s savings.

“It is fundamental to inculcate a savings culture in our population, even more so in children and young people, so that from an early age they become aware of the importance of managing their money effectively,” he said. “We must stop seeing these children and young people as potential customers and aim to create a culture of savings in this part of the population,” he said.

The project will include the analysis of youth’s behavior regarding their use of savings, in order to identify and design the product’s specific characteristics, allowing them to improve their quality of life and achieve income generation for their own development and that of their families.

In addition, there will be workshops on financial literacy training, using international methodology (AFLATEEN), focused on youth between the ages of 15 and 18, to provide both financial and social education.