- Green finance, savings products for low-income populations and financing opportunities for SMEs and entrepreneurs in the Caribbean among key topics
Media registration is now open for this year’s XV Inter-American Microenterprise Forum (Foromic 2012), the leading forum for supporting and financing microenterprises, small and medium-sized companies, and small farmers in Latin America and the Caribbean. Foromic will take place in Barbados from Oct. 1 to Oct. 3.
More than 1,000 participants are expected to attend Foromic, which for the first time ever will be held in an English-speaking Caribbean country. The event this year will focus on innovative ways to unlock entrepreneurship. It is being organized by the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), a member of the IDB Group, in collaboration with the Government of Barbados.
The forum will have the participation of impact investors and delegates from financial and microfinance institutions, associations of microentrepreneurs, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, international organizations, foundations and the academia working in the sector.
The first day of the conference on Oct. 1 focuses on Barbados and the Caribbean, with panels discussing development opportunities for small businesses, microfinance, entrepreneurship among youth and women, and emerging business from renewable energies.
The conference program for the second day will highlight innovative financing models for small and medium-sized businesses as well as expanding business models to provide financial services for the poor beyond microfinance to include savings. As in previous years, the latest developments in microfinance are at the center of the event, which will have panels presenting lessons learned about the effective use of new technologies in providing financial services, improvements in corporate governance, and promising innovations in rural and agricultural finance
The last day features panels on impact investing as an opportunity for the Caribbean, and ways to unlock women entrepreneurship. Finally, improving client protection and financing models to finance green businesses, particularly related to renewable energy and energy efficiency will close the conference.
During the event’s inauguration, the MIF will deliver the Inter-American Awards for Microenterprise Development. The ceremony will announce awards for the following categories: best microfinance and microsavings institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean, and the best institution promoting livelihoods opportunities for disadvantaged youth.
Also during the inauguration, the MIF will announce the winner of the award for excellence in local entrepreneurship in Barbados, sponsored by Citi Foundation.
About the MIF
MIF is the largest provider of grants for private sector development in Latin America and the Caribbean. Since its founding in 1992, MIF has been a major supporter of microfinance and microenterprise development in the region.
With the 15th edition of the Foromic since 1998, the microfinance sector has come a long way. While in 1998, the region had only 205 microfinance institutions serving 1.5 million customers, today Latin America’s close to 700 institutions attend to more than 12.5 million customers who receive more than $15 billion in loans annually.