Microfinance Horizon

11 December 2010 [PressRelease]

The First Microfinance Foundation Egypt (FMF-E), an institution of the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance, is holding a three day exhibition, 9-11 December 2010, in the Maadi neighbourhood of Cairo, to offer artisans from the Darb al Ahmar, Gamaleya and Mansheyat Nasr districts an opportunity to showcase and sell their products to a broad audience of the city’s local and international residents.

The exhibit, which is designed to introduce the work of microfinance clients to a broader market of shoppers from Cairo and tourists from the Middle East and beyond, will have 35 stands with leatherwork, arts and crafts and the traditional mother of pearl boxes created by the artisanal community in Darb al Ahmar.

This exhibit is part of a broad effort to revitalise Darb al Ahmar, one of Cairo’s poorest districts, through a number of coordinated initiatives, including the Cairo Economic Livelihoods Project (CELP). The Project uses career and job counselling services, craft development, business development services and access to microfinance to increase and improve employment opportunities for men and women in the area. Other projects of the Aga Khan Development Network include the 35 hectare (74 acre) Al-Azhar Park, a number of restoration projects in Darb al Ahmar, including the Umm al Sultan Shabaan mosque, the Khayrebek complex and Aslan Mosque and Square, as well as health, education and civil society programmes.

“Watching businesses grow and Darb al Ahmar become a thriving community with healthy families shows that microfinance and business development services are highly complementary and can further the success of clients,” said Khaled Al-Gazawi, the Chief Executive Officer of FMF-E. “Microfinance alone cannot alleviate poverty.”

CELP is a bilateral agreement funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the Aga Khan Foundation Canada in collaboration with FMF-E and the Darb al Ahmar Community Development Company (CDC).

As part of this project, the CDC complements the work of FMF-E by targeting the under-employed and unemployed with vocational training. After training is received, CDC clients can be referred to FMF-E for a loan to build their own businesses. The CDC also supports artisans through access to international designers, training courses to refine their traditional craft and the tools to market their products.

In a neighborhood where few residents have a formal education, business development services teach entrepreneurs how to operate and manage their businesses more efficiently. Courses include instruction on financial literacy and basic accounting, business planning, marketing and sales. They also help businesses reduce the environmental impact of their activities on their neighborhood and help micro-businesses to transition into the formal economy. In 2009, with the financial support of CIDA, FMF-E established a Business Development Center. FMF-E now offers five courses at the training centers located in Darb al Ahmar and Mansheyat Nasr. At the end of September 2010, FMF-E had extended fee-based training to 4,360 clients, of which approximately 56% were female.

“All of these factors combined will benefit the community by strengthening and establishing a more gender and environmentally sensitive business sector,” said Ferry de Kerckhove, Ambassador of Canada to Egypt in his speech at the opening of the exhibit.

Through this exhibit, FMF-E is helping to revitalise a community that until 2003 lacked basic infrastructure and services. By strengthening businesses and improving the income and employment potential of its clients, FMF-E is playing an active role in the socio-economic development of the region.

For more information, please contact:

Aliyah Esmail
Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance
1-3 Avenue de la Paix – 1202 Genève
Tel:+41 22 909 7347
Fax: +41 22 909 7290
aliyah.esmail@akdn.org

About the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance

Since its establishment in 2005, AKAM has brought together over 25 years of microfinance activities, programmes and banks that were administered by sister agencies within the Aga Khan Development Network. The underlying objectives of AKAM are to reduce poverty, diminish the vulnerability of poor populations and alleviate economic and social exclusion. AKAM is a not-for-profit; non-denominational; international development agency created under Swiss law. It has 13 microfinance operations and two microinsurance operations in 13 countries. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland. It is governed by a Board of Directors and the Chairman of the Board is His Highness the Aga Khan.

Aga Khan Foundation Canada

Aga Khan Foundation Canada is a non-profit international and non-denominational agency that supports social development programs in Asia and Africa. As a member of the world-wide Aga Khan Development Network, the Foundation works to address the root causes of poverty: finding and sharing effective and lasting solutions that help improve the quality of life for poor communities. AKFC programs focus on four core areas: health, education, rural development and building the capacity of non-governmental organizations. Gender equity and protecting the environment are integrated into every program. Established in 1980, the Foundation has built a reputation in Canada as an effective development organization that acts as a catalyst for increasing awareness and understanding of key global issues.