22 Sept 2022
A webinar discussion on the findings and themes from the latest e-MFP survey of sector trends
In 2018, the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP) launched the first Financial Inclusion Compass survey, as a way to leverage e-MFP’s multi-stakeholder membership and position in the inclusive finance community. The results of the mixed-methodology survey were published as the Financial Inclusion Compass, a now-annual publication series that gives to practitioners, investors, donors, academics, and support service providers the chance to present their thoughts on the trends, future priority areas, challenges and opportunities for inclusive finance in the short, medium and long term.
The Financial Inclusion Compass 2022 is the fifth edition in this series, and we were delighted to launch it at a webinar on 5 October, led by author e-MFP’s Sam Mendelson, and joined by Stuart Rutherford and Apricot Wilson as respondent discussants:
• Stuart Rutherford, a researcher, writer, practitioner, and teacher, is the originator of the ‘financial diaries’ research methodology. His books "The Poor and Their Money" and the co-authored "Portfolios of the Poor" describe how poor people around the world manage their money. In Bangladesh in 1996, he set up SafeSave, the world’s first microfinance organisation aimed at helping poor people with basic money management.
• Apricot Wilson has worked in the microfinance industry since 2016. During this time, she has worked for the Luxembourg Microfinance and Development Fund (LMDF) in a range of functions, most recently risk and impact management. Apricot studied languages at Cambridge, has an MBA from CEIBS in Shanghai and is a CFA charter holder. She recently moved to Edinburgh to explore additional opportunities in impact investment.
Sam Mendelson presented key findings of the survey, both the quantitative ranks and index scores as well as the summary themes from the open-ended qualitative questions. After that short presentation, Apricot and Stuart – both Compass survey respondents themselves – gave their thoughts, and there was ample opportunity for questions and comments from the audience.