CERMi’s current projects include doctoral investigations (see "PhDs" section) and other research projects (here below) conducted in partnership with foundations and microfinance actors in the field. 

Other projects:

Rating in Microfinance : Which way forward ?

In 2007, a research project on rating in Microfinance has been conducted by André Farber and Marek Hudon. This research has shown the growing implication of commercial actors in microfinance, and how they shape the role of international donors. The originality of the research is to focus on the complementarities between public actors, commercial actors and socially responsible investors. The research has also led to the constitution of a database on microfinance institutions and existing financing tools.

BNB Sponsorship

The uneven development of the microfinance sector

Thanks to a grant received from the David & Alice Van Buuren Fund, a comparative study on the development of the microfinance sector in three continents (Africa, Asia, and Latin America), has been launched in March 2007. This research project, supervised by André Farber, Kim Oosterlinck, Ariane Szafarz and Daniel Traça, aimed at explaining the uneven development of the microfinance sector. It has shown that government implication is a key factor to a fast growing microfinance industry and that cooperation between different microfinance actors seems a promising way of extending the activity spectrum. The issue of geographical discrepancies, notably between urban and rural regions, has also been tackled. In November 2007, an international symposium on the Moroccan microfinance sector has been co-organised with the LINKS Centre of the University Hassan II Aïn Chock of Casablanca, directed by Fouzi Mourji and Mohammed Berrada.

Financed by the David &Alice Van Buuren Fund

Scientific collaboration on “risk in microfinance” with the “Monnaie, Finance, Banque” Department, Université Lumière Lyon II

Since July 2005, the CEB microfinance team had established close ties with the researchers of the “Monnaie, Finance, Banque” Department of the Université Lumière Lyon II. In 2007-2008, with the support of the “Commissariat Général aux Relations Internationales” (CGRI), this collaboration led to two common workshops on risk in microfinance.

During the first « Journée franco-belge de la microfinance », organised at Centre Emile Bernheim (ULB) on October 26th, 2007, the speakers were Eddy Bloy and Cyril Fouillet (Université Lumière, Lyon II), Jean-Michel Servet (University of Geneva), Marek Hudon (ULB), Marc Labie (UMH), Sylvie Fanta (ULB). The second meeting, organised in Lyon on December 14th, 2007, included scientific presentations from Ritha Sukadi (ULB), Laurent Gheeraert (ULB), Marek Hudon (ULB), Anaïs Périlleux (UMH), Célestin Mayoukou and Dorothée Masquita (University of Rouen) and Jean-Michel Servet (University of Geneva).

Projet Tournesol, CGRI-CNRS