Financial services for the very poor - thinking outside the box

Most microfinance institutions (MFIs) aim to reach poor people, but rarely manage to serve the extremely poor. This article starts by report-ing on a survey of very poor slum dwellers, examining what they value in MFI programmes, and contrasting these with those of not-so-poor clients. Dramatic differences are not apparent, but both groups placed great emphasis on the security of their savings, and on flexible options for loan term and repayment schedules. A further survey revealed that most MFIs reach the ‘upper poor’ in greater numbers than the very poor.