A MICROFINANCE HANGOUT.

A Microfinance hang out ? or may be a hang out at a microfinance ??. Yes indeed !!!. A hang out, a brief stay in the microfinance sector or better still call it an adventure into microfinance. It was not an adventure into the unknown though. Good enough I had some basic training in Business Management / Administration from a British institution. So finding myself at a management position in a Microfinance institution was not a fluke. Besides, it was also an adventure in pursuit of a silent passion. A silent but deep passion for development work and sustainable social change; poverty alleviation being the hallmark. It was a worthwhile adventure I must say because I went, I saw and whether or not I conquered is left for the work done and posterity to speak.

The world of Microfinance is that of regulated entities and or financial intermediaries which do not have status of banks or major financial institutions. They carry out loan operations and or saving collections, and offer specific financial services to populations who mainly operate outside the traditional banking channel. Considering the above therefore, microfinance Institutions refer to entities which exercise micro finance activities.
Globally, the Spectacular growth of the Microfinance sector has been fueled not by market forces alone but also by conscious actions of National Government, NGO’s and donors who view microfinance as an effective tool for poverty alleviation. In fact much of the impetus behind this large and increasing support for microfinance hinges on the assumption that its economic and social impacts are significant.

The Micro-finance Sector in my Country Cameroon is a steadily growing one with also an increase Government Interest and Participation. The history of Micro-finance in this country officially dates as far as 1990, with law No. 90/053 of 19/12/1990 relating to the liberalization or creation of associations and law No. 92/006 of 14/08/1992 on Cooperative Societies and Common Initiative Groups. The Prime Ministerial Decree No. 98/300/PM of September 1998 fixes the modalities for the exercise of activities of Savings and Loan Cooperative Societies, while Decree No. 2001/023/PM of 29/01/2001 modifies certain dispositions of the Decree of 1998.
In April 2001, Government of Cameroon through the office of the Prime Minister declares the document on the National Politics for the promotion and consolidation of Micro-finance. By this declaration, Government not only made public her strategy to this effect, but also is determined beside the classic banking sector, to facilitate the development of financial services by creating a favorable  and  enabling environment. To further strengthen and coordinate activities in the Micro-finance Sector, Government adopted COBAC ( French acronym for Banking Commission of Central African States ) Regulation No. 01/02/CEMAC/UMAC/COBAC of 13/04/02  relating to the conditions of exercise and control of activities of Micro-finance in the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC). By this regulation, micro-finance in the country and CEMAC Zone became categorized between category 1 to 3 according to their specificities.

Micro-finance represents a large portion of Cameroon’s Finance Sector, of up to 44% and covers 287 localities. It serves about 520.000 customers/clients in 8 of the country’s 10 Provinces(now Regions) with deposits of over 95 billion francs cfa (USD 231.9 millions) and an aggregate loan portfolio of francs cfa 61 billion (USD 148.9 million). This is indeed a vibrant Sector.
In the framework of the implementation of her policy for the fight against poverty, Government views Micro credit as an effective instrument. She therefore intends to institutionalize, organize and reinforce the actual system of Micro-finance as suitable to the country’s socio-economic context and also fosters the integration into the formal financial sector the population which cannot comply with the services of the classic banking system.

How effective is the microfinance instrument in fighting poverty ? or better still rural poverty ? The expected answer here takes me back to my adventure or hang out days in this sector. My adventure drive took me to PROVIDENCE  SAVINGS  AND LOAN  LTD -  a microfinance institution ( MFI ). It is a striving microfinance institution, fully registered in Cameroon. It is based in Limbe the Anglophone Southwest Region of Cameroon. I was there at the beginning of this institution. We pulled resources together, we formulated policy objective, we set the vision/mission and channeled the purpose. We network our ideas and some people bought it over. We were a handful of men, women and community based organization driven with passion to set up an institution which became -  PROVIDENCE SAVINGS AND LOAN COOPERATIVE ( PRESLCO) LTD. So I got at the helm of affairs in this institution. Not because I had training in Business Management but mainly because I was passionate about the formation, I was there at the beginning, I understood the vision and could drive the vision better.

At PRELSCO LTD, we carried out activities and programs; but most striking to me was the Rural Micro Savings and Credit Scheme ( RUMISACS ). This an outreach to the rural communities. It is innovative -  community focused and participatory,  socio-economically impacted lives. It is a development tool we created. By it we provided financial services with social dimension according to dire needs. At inception of this program, we set up a network of cashpost or micro cash centers in some rural communities and suburbs of Limbe. We operated this through Mobile Cash Pick Agents. The rural people were encouraged to save, micro loans  also given to them for productive purposes - carrying out income generating activities. It is not surprising that multiple micro economic and income generating activities are springing up in the rural areas we operated this program. Self reliance has been established and community welbeing  instituted in the process. At least minimum commercial presence has also been attracted in the areas which has prompted local Government authorities to respond with some rural infrastructure development like farm to market roads and electricity.

Obviously there are other microfinance establishments just like PRESLCO LTD and even more than it. But if they also are in the same line of activities like PRESLCO or doing even more; then one can say with some measure of certainty that Microfinance has been effective in fighting rural poverty.


                                            BY   :   GODYCREATIVE

WOMEN AND DEVELOPMENT : “THE PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN “

                                                          ABSTRACT

 Writing on the rights and statues of women is a formidable task. The subject, one of the most debated in the field of human rights is a vast one but still has an incomplete picture. The most perplexing aspect of this task is the approach and more particularly how to delimit what should be the proper scope of the subject.

In all spheres of social interaction, the rights of women have been undermined. This is because of years of men’s oppression and exploitation which have repressed women’s creative abilities. The emphasis in the study of the statues of women has shifted in the few decades. Early writings revolved around women’s traditional roles and centered on their position in the family. During the 1970s however, academic literature moved away from studying women in the family toward examining their activities outside the domestic setting and investigating their place in social, economic and political relations.

This research article  is to serve as a documentary source for the important international instruments dealing with the rights of women. It also tries to highlight the provision of a context for and a perspective on the documentary presented in order to help begin to make preliminary assessment of or at least encourage women to think further about some of the issues associated with their internationally recognized rights.

Several good reasons can be stated for studying the rights of women from the legal perspective. For one, it is an area in which as already stated, rapid and substantial change has taken place within quite recent years. The arena of women’s rights provide an ideal laboratory for examining the way various supreme courts as interpreters of the fundamental law of their land, both initiate and respond to social change. The role played by legal argument in the process, the role of changing societal norms and even the role of political pressures, can all be explored by analysis; for there is value in knowing what is the standing law, especially on important questions of public policy. Knowledge of an existing law is an essential prerequisite for deciding which law will be most suitable concerning the rights of women.

                          INTRODUCTION :

This article has been structured to present a documentary source for the important international and domestic instruments dealing with the rights of women.

Human rights are by nature applicable to all persons. However, women suffer from deprivations that have no bearing on either their social contributions or their capabilities, deprivations that show disregard for rights recognizable as inherent to everyone. Accordingly, the international community concluded that it was both just and proper to create certain human rights instruments that bear uniquely on women. Thus women are accorded protection under relevant national and international human rights instruments. Also, relevant international documents under scrutiny have outlined other rights apart from those stated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), such as the right to vote in all elections and to be eligible for elections to all publicly elected bodies, to implementation thereof and to take part in non-governmental organizations and associations concerned with the public life of nation-states.

The persons involved with framing the instruments guaranteeing human rights were quite informed on the fact that women would have to play active roles in fashioning whatever equality they want to enjoy, and that women’s political empowerment would be an indispensable instrumental goal on the social road to gender equality in all respects.  Conversely, the international instruments presenting the categories of rights characterized by social, economic and cultural factors relating to matters of employment and social order, utilize as their major anchor the opinion that genuine equality between the sexes can be achieved only if no one is forced into predetermined roles on account of his/her sex.

Women’s status in most societies, outlines a system of operation. However, a few works exist which acknowledge the very potential contributions of internationally recognized instruments establishing rights for women. The basis of this instruments is to reform national and international structures  that defined and promote gender discrimination. It is not uncommon to discover that many of the people in the struggle for equality among the gender had little or no knowledge of this rights. The changes achieved in women’s status have been extremely uneven. Whether in economy, education, government or international organizations, there is no major field of activity and no country in which women have attained equality with men. Throughout the world, women are still disproportionately represented. They remain a small minority at the centre of political power. Yet, the silent revolution is slowly gaining strength. Women are more educated, more active economically, more successful politically than they were a few decades ago. Now, there is an undercurrent of confidence and co-operation among them that is new to the world and has great promise.

Global interest in human rights increased remarkably in the last decade. The adoption of the UDHR provided a framework within which international covenants and conventions came into force. International NGOs provided against infringements of these rights and proposed satisfactory mechanisms through which the protection of basic human rights could be pursued.  However, greater interest does not necessarily mean greater protection, for the rights to be protected are themselves in dispute. Their enforcement depends on states which by ratifying various treaties accept certain limitations upon their sovereignty. States have traditionally been unwilling to subject themselves to external control as imposed by international law.

Women are said to be equal to men in all affairs of society. The meaning of equality sadly has been misunderstood. The idea that women’s rights should be exactly the same as those of men is far from becoming a reality. The twentieth century witnessed the emergence of rights of women to franchise. Women’ rights movements sprang up and developed tremendously around the world. The activities now cover all civil and political rights of the women, such as their right to choice of citizenship after marriage, right to equal pay and equal fob opportunity, right to vote and be voted for, and the right to be eligible to public offices.

Moving into the twenty-first century, the drive for women’s rights has accelerated and taken a global momentum. Since the global conference on women issues held in Mexico City, the campaign for equality between women and men has witnessed significant changes and undeniable advances. Not only have governments adopted legislations that promote equal opportunities, treatments and rights, but women have now entered into the labour market in unprecedented numbers, pursuing a greater role at all levels of public life.

One of the major achievements of the past decade has been the support by a number of countries for the 1979 UN CEDAW which legally binds governments to achieve equal rights for women in all fields. For hundreds of years, women have been considered in the light of homemakers. Nevertheless, today it is unrealistic to define women in terms of marriage and family without giving a thought to the individual woman with legal rights, economic resources and responsibilities to herself, as well as to others.

EQUALITY OF RIGHTS FOR  MEN  AND  WOMEN

It is noteworthy that human beings devise a multitude of ways to distinguish themselves from others. A set of characteristics example, racial, ethnic, cultural, linguistics and religious differences unify persons into groups as well as separate them from one another. Within such groups, considerations as various as gender, age, education, family, even friendship are often used to accent the differences between persons. This distinction which culminates in the separation of persons living in the same society, provides the framework from which the idea of human rights must be evaluated.

The notion of human rights is both important and obscure because to some extent, it mitigates this seemingly natural tendency to accentuate the many differences between others and ourselves. The idea of human rights is especially important in the face of pressure to put these differences at the service of the inclination to dominate or degrade others at times simply because they are different.

Trying to understand what we have in common with others who are in so many ways quite distinct from us is a profound task. Yet, when insignificant differences provide reasons to disregard the humanity of others, human and constitutional rights offer the strongest constraint against doing so.

Equality is a “general principle of elementary justice applicable to all human rights. This means that whatever level may be reached in the realization of those rights in a particular Country or territory should apply to every individual residing there without discrimination of any kind”.

The UN is committed to achieving equality of rights. Equality for women may stand to mean the realization of rights denied as a result of institutional instruments are devoted in their entirety to promotion an protection of the principle of equality of men and women. The UN for once proclaims in its charter that it shall place restrictions on men and women as to their eligibility to participate in either its principal or subsidiary organs. Furthermore, the U N had member-states to pledge to take joint and singular action in cooperation with the body in order to achieve the aim of realizing fundamental freedoms “for all without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion.

In 1989, on the 4^th of May, ECOSOC noted that the General Assembly having endorsed the Nairobi Forward – Looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women, steady progress was being made in achieving de jure equality between the sexes, but showed concern that progress in other regions is infact slow. Recognizing that equality for women is closely linked with their economic independence and noting that various affirmative action policies can accelerate the eradication of discrimination against women; the Council urged Governments to give high priority to measures and temporary affirmative action programmes that will more rapidly bring about equality in women’s economic participation.

Today, though the principle of equality of men and women has won almost universal acceptance, full equality between the genders is far from being realized in practice. The Copenhagen World Conference defined equality as meaning both legal equality and elimination of de jure discrimination as well as also the equality of rights, responsibilities and opportunities for the participation of women in development both as beneficiaries and as active agents. For women in particular, equality means the realization of rights that have been deprived as a result of cultural, institutional, behavioural  and attitudinal discrimination. Equality is important for development and global inequities perpetuate themselves and increase tensions for all types.

The establishment of a human and progressive society reposes on the concept expressed in the strategies that women’s advancement in any one area cannot be achieved without corresponding set standards and effected legally binding treaties to protect women’s rights. The struggle to achieve equality for women requires an overall shift in perception. Too often, women’s rights are perceived as a social question rather than an issue of human rights. Fortunately, traditional human rights organizations have included women’s rights in their agendas and compilations covering studies, legal briefs and statistics are being precluded.

The obligation to eliminate discrimination against women and to ensure equality with men is assured in many nation-states. This does not negate the fact that the major policies endorsed in several nations admit that women have rights to pursue their material, physical and spiritual wellbeing in conditions of freedom and dignity – as well as economic security.

The declarations made in the numerous conventions held by the various organizations have as their thrust the development that the underlying themes, in several respects, reflect a general urge to ensure the protection of the rights of women as well as the endorsement in practice of these rights. While the UN is not the fist intergovernmental body to deal with questions relating to the status of women, its charter which is the most important agreement making reference to women is the first international instruments to mention equal rights of women and men in specific terms.

The term ‘women’s rights has three different usages. First, it refers to women’s rights to be treated equally with men. Secondly the term can refer to women’s rights to be treated unequally from men; in other words, favoured or protected by law. And lastly, women’s rights can refer to rights that are common to all citizen but affect women in particularly strong ways, or affect women for reasons that are biologically rather than legal. Women’s rights as a distinct area from human rights, evolved since World War II, to express the global community’s commitment to the outlawing of sex-based discrimination. Women by definition should be accorded protection under relevant domestic, regional and global human rights instruments.

                          By   :      Godwin    Luba

                          Pen Name   :   Godycreative

                          Contact       :   lubacade@gmail.com

THE TWO FACES OF KINDNESS

Recently, I was reflecting on the issue of Kindness. I looked at Kindness from difference perspectives. What it really stands for, as one of the positive qualities of humans, and also as one of the characteristics of the new man or new life in Christ ( Ephesians 4:32, Colossians 3:12 ). I equally looked at Kindness as one of the attributes of the Divine nature(2 Peter 1:7 ).

As a liberal but renewed mind, I quite agree with the different perspective of Kindness. They all take different angles to it but obviously have the same facts. In as much as I agree with the social definition of Kindness; I also strongly believe in the final authority of God's word over it.

After a very deep thought however, I came to a personal conclusion that there are two faces of Kindness. There is the Kindness of expectation and the Kindness of no expectation.

The Kindness of expectation is expressed with covert intentions that one day it would be remembered and it would be payback time - whether in the long or short run. I also call this the Kindness of peculiar interest.

The Kindness of no expectation is expressed as a life style. It is expressed to impact lives, identify with negative situations or change unpleasant circumstances. It is expressed as an imbibed quality of virtue. It is expressed as a fruit of the Spirit. This is also what I call the Kindness of goodwill. Only a selected few expresses this face of kindness.

Which kindness do you express ??? It is one thing to be kind but another thing to show the right kind of kindness.
Does your kindness bring glory to God ???