Oikocredit

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Oikocredit logo

Oikocredit is an international cooperative with headquarters in Amersfoort ( Netherlands ). Its aim is to promote development by lending to microfinance institutions , cooperatives and small businesses of disadvantaged people in developing countries, as well as to mobilize church and private capital for such projects. The cooperative feels connected to the ideas of sustainable banking and ethical investment .

history

Historical logo

In 1975 the Ecumenical Development Cooperative Society (EDCS) was founded on the initiative of the World Council of Churches with the aim of mobilizing church reserves for development funding. The basic approach of combining development funding through loans with a valuable investment initially met with skepticism from church finance and development experts. At the end of the 1970s, private individuals and church congregations joined forces to form support groups, from which the majority of Oikocredit's capital today comes.

Lending criteria

Oikocredit takes the following criteria into account when granting loans:

  • economic and social benefits for groups of disadvantaged people
  • Broad participation structures, especially for women
  • Ecological compatibility
  • Economic viability
  • Foreign funding needs

Supported economic sectors

84% microfinance institutions that grant microloans
11% agriculture and food processing, livestock and fishing
1% trade
4% others

Organization and way of working

Oikocredit has a global network of regional and country offices in 33 countries. They advise potential business partners on site, work out a financing plan with them and submit a loan application to the main office. After approval, the regional and country offices will support the project throughout the entire duration.

The main office approves loan applications, monitors the flow of payments, provides central services for the regional offices and does international public relations.

The temporarily elected supervisory board consists of international development experts who design the strategic direction and present it to the general assembly as the highest decision-making body of the cooperative.

In addition to the sponsorship groups, in which private investors, parishes and smaller organizations have come together, churches and church organizations, development organizations and successful project partners are members and thus investors. In accordance with the cooperative principles, each member has one vote in the general meeting regardless of the share capital.

Private individuals, parishes and smaller organizations with financial investments participate in Oikocredit through support groups (mainly in Europe). The support groups manage the shares of their members in trust and are involved in educational and public relations work. In Germany there are eight support groups as well as an Oikocredit International office. Worldwide, over 53,000 private investors in 30 sponsorship groups provide 80% of the capital.

statistics

  • Project financing: 970.8 million euros (as of September 2018)
  • 693 partners in 70 countries (as of September 2018)
  • Investor:
80% support groups (private individuals, parishes, etc.)
13% churches and church organizations
6% International Share Foundation and members
  • Operating costs: 3.4% - based on total assets
  • Employees: 254 - 48 nationalities
  • Borrowers reached by Oikocredit through partner organizations: 37 million
86% of them women
including 50% rural population
Information: as of December 31, 2014

Evaluation of the work

Oikocredit has commissioned various independent research institutes to study the development benefits of the loans. In May 2009, Oikocredit commissioned the study “Women's Empowerment. Comparing concepts & assessing implications for microfinance ”published. She examines the influence of microcredit on the socio-economic position of women in developing countries. In collaboration with the Grameen Foundation, Oikocredit developed the Progress Out of Poverty Index (PPI) to measure the impact of microcredit on the lives of small business owners. Since 2009, Oikocredit has published an annual Social Performance Report.

literature

  • Leonel Roland, A Ship in the Mountains, Poverty, projects and development , Montevideo 2001 ISBN 9974-39-312-4
  • Jörg Hübner, do good and talk about it! - Microcredit programs as an example of a sustainable design of the global financial market - Ethical analyzes and economic perspectives , in: Ökumenische Rundschau, 54th vol., Issue 3, July 2005 ISSN  0029-8654 (contains a business ethical assessment of Oikocredit)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b key figures. In: oikocredit. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018 ; Retrieved on October 25, 2018 (The information on the original page is continuously updated. The information in the article is based on the archived version.).
  2. ↑ [1] (Annual Report 2014, PDF; 4.5 MB)
  3. ^ Oikocredit - Social Impact Analysis Reports ; accessed in September 2014

Coordinates: 52 ° 9 ′ 5.8 "  N , 5 ° 22 ′ 44.4"  E