Senior management in the field

Chikonzero is certainly being kept very busy! This last week he’s taken part in the 3-day internal training course on PRA (see previous post) which also included going to the field to try out his new research skills. In addition, he’s been out doing more business assessments to hone his PRA skills and get more insights into the issues that clients face in running their businesses.

Members of MicroLoan Foundation (MLF) Malawi’s senior management have been coming along to the business assessments to get a feel of what the issues are on the ground for their clients. It was a great opportunity for clients to meet management staff, and for management to reconnect to the charity’s clients, and understand in more detail the ways in which they use the MLF loans. So far we’ve had the CEO, Finance Manager and HR Manager attend the assessments, with more planned.


Chikonzero with James Kajamu (CEO) with a client



Chikonzero with Julius Kamanga (Finance Manager) interviewing another client

Welcome our new SPM officer!

I’m very pleased to report that we have found my replacement! His name is Chikonzero Undi and he comes to us with lots of relevant experience and bags of enthusiasm for making sure MicroLoan Foundation is achieving its social mission. Chikonzero’s background is in research and monitoring & evaluation, and he’s also set up his own community based organisation working on a voluntary basis with vulnerable people.

Chikonzero is being kept extremely busy not only learning the ropes of what MicroLoan Foundation does on a day to day basis – all the way from clients and Loan Officers up to management at Head Office – but also shadowing me on my various SPM activities. He’s already taken on an active role in carrying out some social assessment questionnaires and a business assessment. Next week there’s a 3-day internal Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) course taking place for him, the internal audit staff and regional managers. He’ll use the people-centred research skills he learns in his ongoing work with clients, ensuring that MLF’s operations are always working hard to meet their needs. Just as well he’s able to soak information up like a sponge! When I leave (in just over a month) I know that Chikonzero will keep the momentum up on the SPM activity.



Picture: Chikonzero interviews a client as part of MLF’s social assessment work

A client’s business under the spotlight

Part of what we’re also looking at with the Social Performance Management work we’re carrying out here at MicroLoan Foundation (MLF) is protecting the clients from over-indebtedness. One way in which this is currently addressed is by the savings clients have to have as a deposit in order to access a loan: 10% for their first loan and 20% for subsequent loans. This ensures clients are taking loans that are appropriate to their means. Another way is the group themselves. If they feel that a client is asking for a loan that’s too high, they will step in and suggest she reduces the amount requested. For example, they would know that she might have struggled to pay her loan back in the last cycle because, say, there was an illness in the family, so would advise she does not put undue pressure on herself in the next loan cycle until her family situation has settled down again.

In addition to this, we’re also looking at how business assessments might be integrated into MLF’s operations. These would give further insight into the relationship between the client’s business and her ability to repay her loans. I’ve therefore been trialling the methodology and in the process have gained some fascinating insights into what it means to be a MLF client and small businesswoman. I’d like to share just one client’s story with you now…

Magret Msimuko is a widow and on her 6th loan from MicroLoan. She is based in Nkamenya, a small trading town in the Central Region of Malawi. Her first four loans were spent her business of trading chitenjes (the colourful cloth used as skirts) in the local villages for maize. The maize she would then sell in the market-place. Before setting out she would work out how much maize she needed to trade for the fish and cloth in order to ensure she made a profit. It was hard work, and involved walking long distances between villages to carry out her trading business, but she made a profit, was able to send three children (one of whom is an orphan) to secondary school and make regular savings into the MLF group savings account.

Recently in her 5th cycle, she decided to change her business to a small restaurant which doesn’t require her to spend her days walking. It’s based in the bustling main market centre of town, and she serves tea and scones, as well as the staple nsima (made of maize) with vegetables and meat or beans. With the two most recent loans she has set the business up, buying tables, chairs, pots and plates as well as the necessary food-stuffs and fuel. Though she set up in the rainy season, a difficult time of year before the harvest when people are at the most vulnerable to food insecurity and don’t have much money, she is optimistic that now the harvest is in full flow the business will start to take off.

Why clients decide to leave MLF

Part of the piloting activity we’re doing is to look at why clients exit MicroLoan Foundation. The Branch Managers have been working hard, visiting clients’ homes and carrying out questionnaires looking at the client’s business and any problems she might have had, what she thinks of MicroLoan’s procedures (interest rates, repayment frequency, savings and so on), how the group functioned and what changes she would suggest making. I went out with the Central Regional Manager, Susan Kondowe, this week to do some follow-up unstructured interviews with a selection of the ladies who’ve already done the exit questionnaire. This allows us to compare the results from the questionnaires and the more informal interviews, to see if we’re really getting to the heart of the issues clients are facing. We’re pleased by the level of similarity between the two methods of data collection, which goes to show the Branch Managers are doing a great job.

The types of reasons clients are giving for exiting are varied but include personal or family illness, having to focus on farming during the rainy season and disliking the repayment frequency of 2 weeks.

To give you more of an insight into the types of issues a client might face, here is Mary Chauma’s story. Mary runs a successful small restaurant in the centre of Kasungu, and originally joined MicroLoan a few years ago right after the death of her husband because she wanted to grow her business. After 5 loan cycles she decided she didn’t need any more loans, as she’d done what she’d set out to do with the business and it was thriving. Then last year she was keen to rejoin, wanting to further strengthen the business, but sadly her younger sister was very sick and ultimately passed away, meaning she had to spend time nursing her and then paying for her funeral costs. This meant that the funds she had set aside for her deposit to access a MicroLoan loan were diverted to the funeral costs. Despite these family tragedies the restaurant continues to flourish and is assisting her with her household financial needs, and she’s hoping to rejoining MicroLoan as planned soon.



Photo: Susan Kondowe (on the right) speaks to a client about her reasons for leaving MicroLoan Foundation

Recruiting my replacement
It’s amazing how the time flies! One minute I’m wandering around Kasungu not really knowing where I’m going or what I’m doing, and now we’re immersed in piloting the social performance management activity and it’s time to recruit my replacement. We’ve had over 50 applications for the role and interviews take place this week. I’m sure we have a gem in there!

Field training

The last week has been busy, spending time with staff at both of the MicroLoan pilot branches doing lots of field based training. There are some questions that are still causing a bit of a problem (that dreaded chair question!) but we’re making progress. I’m hoping by next week the branch staff will be carrying out the piloting activity solo, though I’ll still be in very regular contact to talk through any issues, and will be doing quality control checks on a number of interviewees. The photo shows me with Olivine from the Kasungu branch interviewing a client in her home.



Getting to the clients’ homes has proved tricky at times. The rains have made the roads almost impassable at times, and my off-road driving skills (which were non-existent a couple of weeks ago) have certainly been tested! I’m happy to report that I’ve managed to negotiate the roads, water and mud with no ill consequences!



Photo: one of my driving challenges!

Floods, canoes and bridges – all in a day’s work

Although the field staff at Kasungu and Mchinji branches are now carrying out the piloting activity solo, I’m still on hand of course in case of questions or problems. For example, recently Olivine (the Kasungu branch manager) had travelled a large number of kms to interview some new clients in their homes, only to find the area was flooded and their homes totally inaccessible. The situation was rescued though, and Olivine was able to replace the original new clients with others that were less likely to involve the need for a canoe!

To make sure that everything’s going as it should, and also to see whether there are any major differences between clients being interviewed in the home and in groups, I’ve been doing field spot checks. It’s still very early days so no firm conclusions yet, but the checks have illustrated some other complications…such as what to do when we’re asking questions about a client’s home but she lives part of the time near her field to carry out farming activity and part of the time in town to do business. These are the sorts of bridges you can only cross once you start the piloting! (The answer to the question is, ask the questions about the place she considers to be her main home.)

A focused song and dance!

Although we’re speaking to women one-on-one in their homes about what they think about the training MicroLoan Foundation provides, we also wanted to get a feel of how a focus group discussion on the same topic would work. The discussion was facilitated by Martha Nkhoma, the operations manager, who got everyone feeling relaxed by starting off with a group song and dance! She then sat in amongst the women, and guided what turned out to be a very lively discussion. The women were clear about what they liked – understanding the importance of business diversification, knowing MicroLoan’s procedures for example – but were likewise vocal about what they thought needed improvement. This included more focus on ongoing training and more detailed understanding of how to plan their business and keep accurate financial records.

These sorts of discussions are great for letting conversation take their own course, giving clients the opportunity to voice all manner of issues and ensure they have a chance to ask any burning questions. Not having met Martha before, the women were also delighted to have the opportunity to have quality time discussing issues important to them with the operations manager.



Picture: the group warms up with a dance (Martha in the centre in black skirt)