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On mission drift in microfinance institutions

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  • Armendáriz, Beatriz
  • Szafarz, Ariane

Abstract

This paper sheds light on a poorly understood phenomenon in microfinance which is often referred to as "mission drift": A tendency reviewd by numerous microfinance institutions to extend larger average loan sizes in the process of scaling-up. . We argue that this phenomenon is not driven by transaction cost minimization alone. Instead, poverty-oriented microfinance institutions could potentially deviate from their mission by extending larger loan sizes neither because of "progressive lending" nor because of "cross-subsidization" but because of the interplay between their own mission, the cost differentials between poor and unbanked wealthier clients, and region-specific clientele parameters. In a simple one-period framework we pin down the conditions under which mission drift can emerge. Our framework shows that there is a thin line between mission drift and cross-subsidization, which in turn makes it difficult for empirical researchers to establish whether a microfinance institution has deviated from its poverty-reduction mission. This paper also suggests that institutions operating in regions which host a relatively small number of very poor individuals might be misleadingly perceived as deviating from their social objectives. Because existing empirical studies cannot differentiate between mission drift and cross-subsidization, these studies can potentially mislead donors and socially responsible investors pertaining resource allocation across institutions offering financial services to the poor. The difficulty in separating cross-subsidization and mission drift is discussed in light of the contrasting experiences between microfinance institutions operating in Latin America and South Asia.

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Paper provided by University Library of Munich, Germany in its series MPRA Paper with number 31041.

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Date of creation: 2011
Date of revision: 2010
Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:31041

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Keywords: Microfinance; Loan Size; Mission Drift; Cross-subsidization;

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References

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  1. Gonzalez-Vega, Claudio & Schreiner, Mark & Meyer, Richard L. & Rodriguez-Meza, Jorge & Navajas, Sergio, 1996. "Bancosol: The Challenge Of Growth For Microfinance Organizations," Economics and Sociology Occasional Papers 28333, Ohio State University, Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics.
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Citations

Blog mentions

As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
  1. Mission drift in microfinance?
    by Economic Logician in Economic Logic on 2011-06-20 14:40:00
Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
Cited by:
  1. Koen Rossel-Cambier, 2010. "Do Multiple Financial Services Enhance the Poverty Outreach of Microfinance Institutions?," Working Papers CEB 10-058, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  2. Isabelle Agier & Ariane Szafarz, 2010. "Microfinance and Gender: Is There a Glass Ceiling in Loan Size?," Working Papers CEB 10-047, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  3. Jessica Schicks, 2011. "From a supply gap to a demand gap? The risk and consequences of over-indebting the underbanked," Working Papers CEB 11-046, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  4. Jessica Schicks, 2010. "Microfinance Over-Indebtedness: Understanding its drivers and challenging the common myths," Working Papers CEB 10-048, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  5. Sheremenko, Ganna & Escalante, Cesar L. & Florkowski, Wojciech J., 2012. "The Road to Financial Sustainability. Comparative Analysis of Russia and the Caucasus Region," 2012 Annual Meeting, February 4-7, 2012, Birmingham, Alabama 119525, Southern Agricultural Economics Association.
  6. Ahmad Nawaz, 2010. "Issues in Subsidies and Sustainability of Microfinance: An Empirical Investigation," Working Papers CEB 10-010.RS, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  7. Beatriz Armendariz & Bert D'Espallier & Marek Hudon & Ariane Szafarz, 2011. "Subsidy Uncertainty and Microfinance Mission Drift," Working Papers CEB 11-014, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  8. Carlos Serrano-Cinca & Begoña Gutiérrez-Nieto, 2012. "Microfinance, the long tail and mission drift," Working Papers CEB 12-001, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  9. Pierre-Guillaume Méon & Roy Mersland & Ariane Szafarz & Marc Labie, 2011. "Discrimination by Microcredit Officers:Theory and Evidence on Disability in Uganda," DULBEA Working Papers 11-06, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  10. Michael Hamp & Carolina Laureti, 2011. "Balancing flexibility and discipline in microfinance: Innovative financial products that benefit clients and service providers," Working Papers CEB 11-044, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  11. Eddy Bloy & Joël Ernult & Marek Hudon & Anaïs Périlleux, 2011. "Surplus et responsabilité sociale en microfinance :Etude de cas d’institutions péruviennes," Working Papers CEB 11-036, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  12. Koen Rossel-Cambier, 2011. "Is Combined Microfinance an Instrument to enhance Sustainable Pro-Poor Public Policy Outcomes?," Working Papers CEB 11-013, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.

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