The FINANCIAL -- To mark national Microfinance Week we take a look back at the Grameen Crédit Agricole Microfinance Foundation, set up almost four years ago,according to Crédit Agricole .

The remit of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Microfinance Foundation is to take part in the fight against poverty by encouraging financial inclusion of the most disadvantaged and their access to essential goods, chief among which are financial micro-services such as credit, savings, and insurance.

In 2011, the Foundation saw further growth and consolidated its original position in the world of microfinance and social business.

As of 31 December 2011, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Microfinance Foundation had approved 46 financings for microfinance and social business institutions in 19 countries, for a total of 29.8 million euros.

In 2011, the Foundation’s microfinance institutional partners had 1.252 million borrowers, 91% of whom are women, and 79% of whom live in rural areas – a sharp, 68%, increase relative to end-2010. The geographic distribution of these borrowers reflects the Foundation’s priorities: 38% in Sub-Saharan Africa, 56% in South East Asia, 5% in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and 2% in the Middle East and North Africa.

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