Back from my travels

Well, its been a while since I last updated my blog. Life has been very busy - hence my silence.

We launched our Action Plan at the House of Commons in May. It was a successful event and we are working to gain momentum for its support. You can read more about the campaign here.

At the cdfa’s conference in Newcastle in June, we heard about the international impact of the financial systems meltdown and discussed whether it presented a crisis or an opportunity for CDFIs in the UK. The broad consensus was that it presented an opportunity but that there were going to be many challenges on the way to making that opportunity happen. The cdfa stands ready to support its members through the journey ahead.

In my role on the Financial Inclusion Task Force, I was a part of a study tour to India. It was a whirlwind trip, taking in three cities in three days and meeting a whole variety of organisations including policymakers, banks, foundations and practitioners. I found it fascinating and feel there is so much to learn from the microfinance sector in India. For instance, while we look to the States for the impact of its Community Reinvestment Act, we have been unaware of something similar operating in India since 1969! There, all banks (many of whom are state owned) have an obligation to invest a percentage of their loan portfolio into certain sectors, including microfinance. Banks are tested annually and those that have not met this requirement have to invest the outstanding amount in a low yield government bond. The driver for this policy is economic development as opposed to social impacts, which was the driver for the CRA in the US. In looking at bringing this issue to the fore, the cdfa wishes to learn from other countries and create something which is relevant and appropriate to the fiscal, legal and cultural framework in the UK.

I have just come back from Australia as a guest of Foresters Community Finance, the only CDFI in that country. I spoke at a conference in Brisbane, met policy makers in Canberra and was recorded for a podcast by Queensland University, available to download from their website. It is clear there is a need for CDFIs in Australia and policy makers are at the outset of looking at the issues and deciding a way forward. One of my suggestions was to form a Task Force made up of a range of key influential stakeholders to examine the issues and make some strong policy recommendations, a model which has been very successful in the UK. They were certainly interested in this idea. Let’s hope they take it on board and it proves a useful model for them.

On the homefront.
Well, I managed to tack on three days in Sydney at the end of my Australia trip. Even though it is winter there, the weather was lovely and warm. I went to Manly beach and watched the surfers riding the huge waves. I visited the Blue Mountains which are truly breathtaking. And I took part in a jazz dance class with the Sydney Dance Company, safe in the knowledge that I would never see any of them again! Along the way I met loads of people (tourists, gap year students, ex-pat workers), had some great conversations and many, many laughs. It was tempting to stay there but the thought of a heat wave here lured me back……and back to work!