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Access to the Market for Small-scale farmers

Smallholders in the South encounter numerous difficulties on a daily basis. First of all, they face many risks: climate change, epidemics, commodity price volatility, etc. Access to the market and very fluctuating demand make them even more vulnerable. So it is difficult to have a stable income and cope with unexpected events. But it is not all doom and gloom. “Sometimes we harvest a lot of beans but we don’t manage to sell them, and other times, when our harvests are small, buyers ask us for more.” explains Nyambura, a woman farmer in Kenya. “Fortunately, now I sell my production to Vert Ltd

Fair trade Coffee Financed by Alterfin at the Super Bowl

Death Wish, a company that imports coffee from various Alterfin partners, has been selected to broadcast a commercial during the Super Bowl, which with over 100 million viewers is a major event in American television. It is not surprising if the name Death Wish means nothing to you: this young American company is still in its infancy. However, it succeeded in pulling off a real coup recently: it won the ‘Small Business Big Game’ competition, which had over 15,000 entries. This competition gives one small business the incredible opportunity to broadcast a commercial worth 5 million dollars

Co-op members confirm their support for fair trade

Alterfin wanted to reiterate its commitment to small producers in the South by joining forces with Fair Trade Week, which ran from 7 to 17 October in Belgium. Alterfin therefore offered a EUR 5 Oxfam gift voucher for every EUR 1,250 invested (or 20 shares) during this period. More than 350 gift vouchers were distributed between 1 and 20 October. As well as members who increased their investment, 19 new members took the opportunity to join us. A total of EUR 447,250 of additional capital was raised through this action, and will be used to develop our financing activities in the South. Thank

How Do Alterfin Shares Add Value?

‘Give more value to your money’: this is the message given by Alterfin for those who wish to invest their money ethically. But in what way do Alterfin shares add value? Alterfin currently deploys EUR 98 million of capital from more than 6,000 co-op members in Belgium. This capital is invested in microfinance and sustainable agriculture – two sectors that contribute to sustainable development for socially and economically disadvantaged communities in the South by giving them access to fair financial services. An investment that is above all ethical With the investments it makes in the South,

What Ethical Investors Have to Say

More than 5,000 people invest their money in Alterfin. Together, they contribute EUR 49 million of capital. 84% of this capital is held by individuals. Here are portraits of two of our members: Julien first heard about Alterfin in a publication. ‘For me, the combination offered by Alterfin – support for developing countries and the payment of a dividend – was immediately appealing. It wasn’t long before I became a member,’ he recalls. ‘Since I became a member (2009), my parents, my children and my wife have all followed my example. I have also managed to persuade some of my friends, but to be

Alterfin Shares Certified as ‘Ethical’

Alterfin shares have been awarded the Financité & FairFin label for the second year running. This label certifies products that finance activities generating social and/or environmental utility, based on the assessment of five social criteria, including transparency, solidarity and social responsibility.

Chamroeun: credit for thousands of women in Cambodia

Chamroeun is a microfinance institution (MFI) in Cambodia. It grants micro-loans to about 50,000 people, 85% of whom are women. Chamroeun targets the most disadvantaged and issues tiny micro-loans: the average loan is EUR 160. The French non-profit organisation Entrepreneurs du Monde launched Chamroeun (meaning ‘progress’ in Khmer) in 2006 to promote access to financial services (credit, savings, health insurance, etc.) for poorly served communities in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh. The MFI also offers various training courses, ranging from financial education to dealing with domestic

When Microcredit Goes Mobile

How can people gain access to credit when they live in remote areas of the country where no microfinance institutions (MFI) wish to set up a branch because the costs are too high? And for those living in urban areas, how do they avoid the long queues in a bank, only to be told that they are not considered creditworthy or that they will need to come back with additional documents? Is there a way of facilitating access to credit for these people who need financial resources in order to build a better future for themselves? Musoni, an MFI set up in Kenya in 2010, has the answer to all these

Fefisol, a Fund Dedicated to Africa

The European Solidarity Financing Fund for Africa (Fefisol) was established in 2011 as the fruit of collaboration between Alterfin, a partner organization in France for international solidarity in development and investment, Sidi (Solidarité Internationale pour le Développement et l’Investissment) and Etimos (an Italian cooperative investment company). Although the capital of Fefisol mainly originates from private and public investors, including the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the French Development Fund, the three founding organizations are also co-owners of the fund. In operational

20 Years of Service to Africa

The African portfolio of Alterfin has a specific character: more small loans are conferred and more final clients affected than in other regions. Since its establishment in 1994, Alterfin has supported microfinance institutions (MFIs) on the African continent. In the early years, Alterfin mainly provided technical assistance, for example for the CSFS (Collective Self Financing Scheme), in Zimbabwe. The key concern was the provision of technical support in the interests of financial viability. At that time, MFIs represented an attempt to eliminate dependence upon subsidies or grants. This

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