Initiatives

Promoting Responsible Finance 
As a socially responsible lender, EFSE actively promotes responsible banking practices in the target region, be it through workshops, training courses or conferences, for example panel discussion events on Responsible Finance. 

Responsible Finance panel discussions events took place in Belgrade, Serbia (October 2007), in Prishtina, Kosovo (March 2009), in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (December 2009) and in Tirana, Albania (March 2010) for instance.  

Furthermore, the Fund commissions studies and research projects in the area of responsible finance, such as on Responsible Finance and Financial Education in Moldova.

Another dimension of Responsible Finance that EFSE cares about is the public’s understanding of how the financial sector functions in general and more specifically regarding credit products. With this objective, the Development Facility of EFSE in joint cooperation with various financial sector stakeholders from the region has produced educational booklets to promote financial literacy among end-borrowers. A PDF version of the client educational booklet developed by ProCredit Bank in Serbia can be downloaded here.

Čačanska banka created in cooperation with the EFSE an educational TV series named “Little School of Banking”. Learn more about the TV spots here.

EFSE is also among the first endorsers of the Client Protection Principles for Microfinance, supported by a broad coalition of microfinance institutions, networks, funders and practitioners. The purpose of the Campaign, which is housed at the Center for Financial Inclusion, is to ensure that providers of financial services to low-income populations take concrete steps to protect their clients from potentially harmful financial products and ensure that they are treated fairly. Among others, these Principles seek to avoid over-indebtedness, promote transparent pricing, adequate collection practices and ethical staff behaviour, as well as ensuring client complaint mechanisms and privacy of client data. In line with these Principles, EFSE applies a comprehensive set of guidelines to ensure among others that partner lending institutions grant loans in compliance with international environmental and social best practices. Finally, EFSE also expects that partner lending institutions are engaged in fair business practices: for instance that they refrain from unsound lending practices, and that they provide transparent information to their clients and the public at large.

Read more about how EFSE has implemented Responsible Finance by downloading the PDF document EFSE – Promoting Responsible Finance.