”Trainer financial literacy and business coaching for African migrants”

Oxfam Novib and Inafi International are implementing a project, financed by the European Commission, to foster the links between migration and development. The project aims to achieve financial access for migrants and families, and enhance money transfer competition by providing knowledge, technical assistance, and building partnerships to and with immigrant associations in Europe, microfinance institutions in Africa and money transfer operators.

The project will train and enable ten microfinance institutions (MFIs) located in ten Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, and Uganda) to increase its competitive edge in money transfers services and other financial-driven instruments. It will also enable MFIs to build partnerships including a co-development program with immigrant associations working or residing in ten European countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, UK, Spain, Switzerland, and Sweden). The project also aims to provide these immigrants and their families with tools, knowledge and management skills on their finances in order to realize their financial goals and promote financial inclusion.

Within the project we are looking for a consultant:

· To develop a financial literacy toolkit based on existing materials.

· To conduct 10 Financial Literacy trainings of trainers in 10 European countries

· To select and assist 120 migrants in improving their business plans

· To coordinate an European Migrant Entrepreneurhip Award (recruitment of national jury, coordinating interviews of applicants, award ceremony animation, …)

 

Qualifications and skills

For the Financial Literacy component

· Microfinance and financial literacy expert with strong experience in providing trainings and development of training materials.

· Proven knowledge in financial literacy issues.

· Proven knowledge in conducting training on financial literacy among migrants.

· Knowledge in the dynamics of migrants’ remittances, money transfer operators and other remittance channels, and the link between migrants remittances and development.

· Experience with and a network with immigrant associations in Europe.

· University degree in Education, Entrepreneurship, Business Management or equivalent"

· High degree of organization and initiative

· Excellent writing and communication skills in English and French

· Very strong presentation and communication skills

· Highly motivating trainer

For the Entrepreneurs award

· Proven experience in business coaching and entrepreneurship support

· At least 5 years experience in training micro and small business owners.

· University degree in Education, Entrepreneurship, Business Management or equivalent"

· High degree of organization and initiative

· Excellent writing and communication skills in English and French

· Very strong presentation and communication skills

· Highly motivating trainer

 

 

Participation in tendering is open to all legal persons (participating either individually or in a consortium).

 

Instructions to tenderers

The maximum budget available for this contract is 60.000 euro for a max. number of 120 days.

IN SUBMITTING THEIR TENDERS, TENDERERS MUST RESPECT ALL INSTRUCTIONS AND FORMS CONTAINED IN THE TENDER DOSSIER.

The complete tender dossier can be downloaded from this link

Dakar, 13th September 2011

International Network of Alternative Financial Institutions (INAFI International) is delighted to announce that it secured funding from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) under its Financing Facility for Remittances to start with the implementation of a User-Owned, Low Cost Remittance Service. This service will (i) provide an alternative to the current cash-to-cash dominated remittance services; (ii) increase financial literacy among remittance senders and recipients; and (iii) link remittances to microfinance services allowing access to bank accounts, savings, credit services and innovative remittance-based products and services. Initially, under the scope of the grant agreement signed between INAFI and IFAD, the service will target the important Spain-Senegal corridor and it will therefore be implemented at two INAFI member Micro Finance Institutions in Senegal (FDEA and U-IMCEC). Once the expected results are achieved, the service could easily be rolled out to other countries.

INAFI believes that low-cost transfer of remittances is a necessary tool to bring financial services closer to poor people and expects that this innovative new service will serve as a platform to promote local, social and economic development.

To implement the User-Owned, Low Cost Remittance Service, INAFI signed a partnership agreement with the Barcelona-based Federation of Associations of Senegalese Migrants (CASC) and AUXFIN. CASC is an organization established to promote cooperation and interrelation between the Senegalese community and the Spanish and Senegalese public administrations. AUXFIN will provide the UMVA system, a platform and software developed for small banks, with special functions for migrants and their needs for remittances services. Mr. Marco van Andel, an expert in micro-finance, remittances and financial development was recruited as the project manager of this project. He will be a key collaborator between the three partners and will manage the project on behalf of INAFI.

Soukeyna Ndiaye Ba (Executive Director of INAFI): “INAFI is convinced that remittances sent by migrants have a great development potential and therefore remittances is a key theme in our strategic development plan. New initiatives to leverage remittances for development by linking microfinance and remittances are now being initiated by our network in several countries around the world. We are delighted by the support of IFAD to this specific initiative for which our expectations are very high.“

Amadou Bocar Sam (President of CASC): “The idea of a user-owned, low-cost remittance service has been on top of our agenda for several years and after so much hard work the moment has now come to start implementing the idea. We are convinced that we have the right partners to turn this idea into an innovative reality.”

Cornelis Heesbeen (CEO of AUXFIN): “We are excited to provide our tested UMVA tools and expertise to this ground-breaking initiative. It is a great opportunity for us to start working with INAFI and 2 of its member MFI’s, thus expanding further the scope of our growing activities. New in this project is the Migrant Development Fund; the results of this project will have a large impact for migrants over the world.”

24 January 2011

After a survey from the University of Maastricht among 3000 migrants throughout our 10 European countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, UK, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden) and 3 technical trainings on remittances in Dakar, Kampala, Addis Abeba with a diagnostic on remittances in our 10 MFIs (ACSI Ethiopia, SAT Ghana, Finance Trust Uganda, Pride Tanzania, Kafo Jiginew Mali, RCBP Burkina Faso, LAPO Nigeria, KWFT Kenya, Pamecas Senegal, Vital Benin), the new project manager designed a new action plan the first month of his arrival (september 2010).

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07 December 2010

International Network of Alternative Financial Institutions (INAFI International) recently signed partnership agreements with CGMD, FAAL, and DFD to collaborate the project “Harnessing the potentials of remittances for development in Africa by linking microfinance institutions (MFIs) and immigrant associations in Europe”(MIGR/2008/153-811), a three-year project funded by the European Commission. The project aims to actively involve diaspora organizations in various activities by forging partnerships.

Soukeyna Ndiaye Ba, Executive Director of INAFI and Pape Sene, President of Coordination Générale des Migrants pour le Développement (CGMD) signed the partnership agreement after the workshop was conducted at the Centre culturel ELZENHOF in Brussels last November 26. The workshop was attended by about 65 participants representing various African diaspora organizations based in Belgium. CGMD is a federation of various diaspora organizations based in Belgium which are actively involved in migration and development... READ MORE

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