What are Micro Finance Institutions?
Microfinance institutions (MFIs) are the business of financial services to economically active poor and low-income people [financial inclusions] with very limited or no access to services provided by traditional banks (Callaghan, Gonzalez, Maurice, Novak, & Stanley, 2007).
The Working Group on Microfinance (WGIMF) aims to:
- Encourage research to understand better current issues and challenges facing both conventional and faith-based Microfinance as a mapping process to identify the sustainable Business model.
- Provide a forum for academic researchers and industry practitioners to meet and exchange ideas via workshops, conferences, and seminar series
- Develop and maintain close collaboration with industry practitioners in Microfinance.
- Organize research activities that have an impact on society, the planet, and people.
- Provide support for PhD students in Microfinance.
Founder Members of the Organizing Committee
- Dr. Asma Mobarek (Cardiff University)
- Dr. M. Emranul Haque (The University of Manchester)
- Dr. Kais Bouslah (University of St Andrews)
The overarching aim of our working group is to foster research on conventional and faith-based microfinance by organizing research activities and developing a network of Research Fellows and Affiliates. The academics already involved in this working group include founder committee members Dr Asma Mobarek, Senior Lecturer, Economics Section, Cardiff University Business School; Dr. Emranul Haque, Associate Professor; Economics Department; Manchester University; Kais Bouslah, Lecturer in
Banking and Finance at the University of St Andrew. Also, we are with a team including Professor Ahmed Jamal, Cardiff University; Dr Hamid Uddin, Associate Professor, Bradford University, UK; Mr Akmal Hanuk is also a researcher, as well as the founder and CEO of Assadaqat Community Finance; Qian Li, Lecturer, Cardiff University is included in our team. Our team also includes international academics and practitioners. Our international academics, practitioners, and researchers include M. A. Baqui Khalily; Professor, Department of Business Administration; Dean, School of Business; University of Asia Pacific; Bangladesh; M Kabir Hassan is a Professor of Finance in the Department of Economics and Finance at the University of New Orleans. Finally, Huda Hagawe, PhD student at Cardiff University Business School, is a group member who has completed her PhD on MFIs.
One of the aims of this working group is to co-create knowledge, to expand and apply it in the industry to have a meaningful impact on society. We also aim to bring together Microfinance providers (practitioners) and academics to discuss the different business models/practices applied by organizations working in the microfinance sector.
We have a diverse collaboration with national and international Partner MFIs below:
Bangladesh Based Micro Finance Institutions:
The Integrated Development Association (IDA), Credit-and-Development-Forum-CDF; RISDA NGO, DESHA, Centre for Zakat Management from Bangladesh.
UK-Based Community Finance:
ANSAR Finance; YourB credit Union; As Sadaqat Community Finance (ACF)
We have already successfully conducted a hybrid workshop at Cardiff University Business School to apply a mapping exercise for organizations working in the microfinance sector to evaluate the best-fitted model for sustainability in different countries contexts.