Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 20 November 2024 - The Islamic Development Bank Institute (IsDBI) hosted a webinar on an innovative self-sustaining financial inclusion model, the Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) Model, and its impact on improving the livelihoods of people with low incomes.
The webinar presentation was delivered by Mr. Hugh Allen, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of VSL Associates, the organization that developed the savings-driven model. Dr. Hylmun Izhar, a Senior Research Economist at IsDBI, moderated the session.
In his opening remarks, Dr. Sami Al-Suwailem, Acting Director General of IsDBI, noted that the basic principles of Islamic finance, such as helping poor people, avoiding usury, and enabling people to earn a living, are values shared by different cultures and religions.
Mr. Allen gave an overview of the savings groups' global presence and performance, spread across in 77 countries, with a focus on Africa where they are tracking 596,000 groups and 13 million members, 79 percent of whom are female. He highlighted the success of a Sharia-compliant model in Palestine, which formed 437 groups with 8,000 members and a 100 percent loan repayment rate.
Explaining the basic principles and structure of the savings groups, Mr. Allen emphasized that these groups are self-financing, self-managing, and independent, with members selecting each other. The groups are designed to be fully independent after one year to 18 months of training and supervision.
Mr. Allen also explained the savings group functioning and supervision, procedures and impact, digitization, and microfinance challenges. He elaborated on the functioning of a savings group, highlighting the importance of simplicity and visual record-keeping. Mr. Allen concluded his presentation by highlighting some challenges and potential risks associated with microfinance institutions and savings groups.
The two discussants, Mr. Ahmed Ag Aboubacrine, Acting Director of IsDB Independent Evaluation Department, and Dr. Abd Elrhman Saaid Elzahi, Senior Research Economist at IsDBI, spoke on the significance and potential benefits of innovative financial inclusion initiatives.
Mr. Aboubacrine emphasized the importance of financial inclusion initiatives for poverty alleviation and highlighted the role of federations in intermediating capital between surplus and deficit groups.
For his part, Dr. Elzahi stressed the importance of community-based financial inclusion, particularly for rural areas, and the role of NGOs in capacity building. He highlighted the limitations of savings groups, such as informal rules and regulations, limited capital, external shock, scalability, financial literacy, gender dynamics and roan repayment issues. He also suggested potential solutions like establishing a sustainable solidarity fund to address the problem of limited capital, foster scalability, and provide further impact on overall poverty alleviation and technical assistance for financial literacy capacity building.
The questions-and-answers session gave Mr. Allen an opportunity to provide further details on the applicability of the VSLA Model, followed by the closing remarks from Mr. Yahya Rehman, Associate Manager, Knowledge Leaders Section, IsDBI.
Jeddah, KSA, October 8-9, 2024 – The Islamic Development Bank Group (IsDB) hosted the 6th IsDB Group Evaluation Symposium under the theme “Cherishing Learning and Charting out the Future: The Strategic Value of Evaluation in Decision-Making.” This two-day hybrid event brought together a diverse range of experts and stakeholders to explore how evaluation can enhance strategic programming and drive sustainable development.
In his opening remarks, H.E. Dr. Zamir Iqbal, VP Finance and CFO, representing H.E. Muhammad Al Jasser, Chairman of IsDB Group, reflected on the institution's 50-year journey, stating: " Let us honor the progress we have made and the lessons we have learned while looking ahead with a shared sense of purpose and a renewed commitment to deliver meaningful, sustainable development for generations to come."
The symposium’s sessions covered key topics such as leveraging evaluation for strategic insights, responding to global shifts, and corporate evaluation learnings. A number of Panelists emphasized the importance of independence and rigor in evaluation. Dr. Sabine Bernabè from the World Bank Group said: “We must focus on harnessing new data, technology, and methods to improve the rigor, quality, and usefulness of evaluations, and most importantly, refocus on outcomes.”
Discussions also centered on the role of evaluations in addressing major international issues, including climate change. Discussants highlighted the importance of aligning operational strategies with evaluation recommendations to strengthen IsDB’s effectiveness and stressed the need to consider both intended and unintended impacts of development efforts.
Corporate evaluation was another focus area that enabled senior IsDB Group executives to shed light on how evaluations can influence organizational planning, improve risk management, and enhance development effectiveness. The discussions showed a growing need for more precise evaluations, particularly in corporate functions and ongoing operations.
On the second day dedicated to the private sector, insightful sessions explored adaptive evaluation strategies for the private sector to address global challenges and contribute to advancing the Sustainable Development Goals. H.E. Eng. Hani Sonbol, CEO of ITFC and Acting CEO of ICD, emphasized the importance of using sound monitoring and evaluation data to guide decision-making and accurately measure the social and environmental impacts of the entities’ financing. He stated: "If we are serious about moving from strategic intention to effective impact, which I know we are, we need robust monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems to guide our actions and measure their effectiveness. Reliable data and evidence are the lifeblood of impact management."
The sixth edition of the Symposium was intended to foster innovative ideas and establish evaluation as a critical tool for shaping the strategic direction of the IsDB Group. As Mr. Ahmed Ag Aboubacrine, Acting Director of IEvD, noted in his closing remarks: “One of the key takeaways from this Symposium is that Learning is not an endpoint but a continuous process. Our ability to embrace learning at every opportunity ensures we stay agile, resilient, and forward-thinking in an ever-changing world.”
Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 7 October 2024 -The IsDB’s Independent Evaluation Department (IEvD) hosted the International Program for Development Evaluation Training (IPDET) from October 3 to 7, 2024, in Jeddah. The training was conducted by Dr. Stefanie Krapp, Head of IPDET at the University of Bern, and Prof. Dr. Reinhard Stockmann, Director of the Center for Evaluation at Saarland University. A total of 26 participants from IsDB HQ, regional hubs, and partner institutions attended this comprehensive training focused on the fundamentals of evaluation.
The training covered five key modules, equipping participants with essential tools and methodologies for planning, conducting, and using evaluations. It enhanced participants’ understanding of evaluation theory and practice. The participants particularly appreciated the practical applications, and many expressed their intention to implement these newly acquired skills in their work.
Following this training, on October 9 and 10, an IPDET workshop on Evaluation Design was conducted by Dr. Jos Vaessen, Evaluation Advisor at the World Bank’s Independent Evaluation Group. The workshop equipped the 20 participants from IsDB and partner institutions with a greater understanding of ways to design evaluations that are both rigorous and useful for decision-making. Participants explored key principles of evaluation design such as reliability, validity, and methodological consistency. Real-world examples from development evaluations were used to allow participants to apply theoretical concepts to practical situations in their specific contexts.
The Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA), Alathar Impact Center, the King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Foundation (KAHF), and Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) were represented at both learning activities, reflecting IEvD's commitment to strengthening evaluation capacity not only within the IsDB Group but also among its partners.
The IPDET training and workshop form part of IEvD’s Evaluation Learning Week, which also included pre-symposium seminars and the 6th IsDB Group Evaluation Symposium.
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