2008 SPM Initiatives
Of Collaboration and Partnership...

Before the first half of 2008 came to an end, MCPI visited the 6 MFIs receiving the technical assistance on the SPM Roadmap. The visit served as a leveling off as to where these MFIs vis-a-vis Social Performance Management. These visits also emphasized the importance of identifying the SPM Champion and/or establishing an SPM Committee with clear functions.

In August 2008, Katarzyna Pawlak and Volodymyr Tounytsky of MFC conducted the Training of Facilitators for the Quality Audit Tool. The objective of the TOF was to build the capacity of participants as mentors in undertaking social audit using the MFC Quality Audit Tool (QAT). The training was designed as a combination of classroom sessions and hands-on experience in implementing QAT in CARD-MRI-- the host MFI.

The last quarter of the year involved Learning Sessions on the Progress Out of Poverty Index (PPI). In early October, MCPI organized a PPI exposure visit to NWTF in Bacolod. The said visit aimed to give CMEDFI, PBC and CARD an idea on how the PPI is conducted and is processed by NWTF.

A roundtable discussion was also organized in October. The discussion touched on issues pertaining to the use of the PPI for poverty targeting, the applicability and relevance of the ten indicators to the poverty situation in the Philippines, as well as some highly technical issues on scoring and probabilities. Grameen Foundation’s Country Representative Christopher Tan and NWTF’s Gilbert Maramba responded to some of the issues raised. Aside from MFIs, the forum was also attended by individuals representing the academe, private and government-based research agencies and funding agencies, who expressed interest on the PPI.

Lastly, a Training on the Progress Out of Poverty Index was held last December 4-6 at the NWTF. The 3-day training helped participants to:

Appreciate and understand the usefulness of the PPI in tracking client poverty levels;
Be familiar with good practice in sampling; data
collection; and data entry and storage; and
Develop an action plan and be prepared to conduct a pilot project of the PPI within their
institutions.

The training was facilitated by Jeff Toohig of Grameen Foundation, with Gilbert Maramba and Jubert Maquiling as resource speakers from NWTF, and Lalaine Joyas of MCPI and Christopher Tan of Grameen Foundation as co-facilitators.

SPM Technical Assistance in the Philippines
As the SPM Roadmap Unravels

The technical assistance on Social Performance to 6 microfinance institutions has started on the 2nd quarter of 2008. The 6 identified MFIs were RAFI – Cebu Micro Enterprise Development Foundation, Inc., People's Bank of Caraga, Ahon sa Hirap, Inc., Negros Women for Tomorrow's Foundation, Center for Community Transformation and Center for Agriculture and Rural Development.

These MFIs had undergone the SPM strategy workshop and are members of the SPM Working Group.