Previous years

• 2009
• 2008
• 2007

(From most recent to earliest)

• May 11^th, 2010 - CERMi Seminar

  "Combined Micro-finance Schemes: Contribution to organisa-tional performance and socio-economic development", by Koen Rossel-Cambier (Université de Mons, CERMi), from 2.00 to 4.00pm, at the Salle des Conseils of the Warocqué Business School, Université de Mons.
  See the announcement for more details

  (Link to the photos of this activity)

• April 30^th, 2010 - CERMi Seminar

  "Déterminants de la demande de microcrédit : aspects théoriques et évidence empirique", by Dr. Solène Morvant-Roux (CERMi Associate Researcher, IRD, France), from 3.00 to 5.00pm, at the Salle des Conseils of the Warocqué Business School, Université de Mons.
  See the announcement for more details

  (Link to the photos of this activity)

• March 23^rd, 2010 - CERMi Seminar

  "Agricultural Industrialization and Income Distribution in Developing Countries", by Marwa NYANKOMO (Nebraska University, USA) (See the notice for more détails )

• March 18^th, 2010 - CEREN-CERMi Seminar

  This exchange day on microfinance took take place at the ESC Dijon (29 Rue Sambin - 21000 Dijon - France) from 9.30am to 5.30pm.
  For more information, please visit : http://humancapital.community.officelive.com/default.aspx

  (Link to the photos of this activity)

• March 16^th, 2010 - EMP-CERMi Conference

"The microfinance facility programme from the aspect of the European Parliament", by Mrs. Kinga GÖNCZ (European Parliament) at 6.30pm in the Seminar Room of 21, Av. F.D. Roosevelt, 1050 Brussels.

(Link to the photos of this activity)

• March 11^th, 2010 - Brown Bag Seminar

  " Maturity Mismatch and Governance of Microfinance Cooperatives: Lessons from History", by Anaïs PÉRILLEUX (Université de Mons, CERMi, Belgium), from 12.15 to 1.45pm in the Seminar Room at 21, Av. F.D. Roosevelt, 1050 Brussels.

• February 25^th, 2010 - RSAEM Seminar

"Perspectives and a Quantitative Model for Structured Microfinance", by Prof. Dr. Gregor DORFLEITNER (University of Regensburg, DE) (See the notice for more details )

• February 24^th, 2010 - Campus Plein Sud - Conference

  "La microfinance au service des femmes"

  Speaker: Mrs. Rosina VALVERDE DELGADO (Peru), Director of the NGO MIDE (Microcredit for Development)

Conference organised by Prof. Marc Labie and Anaïs Périlleux, at the Hotyat Lecture Room of the Université de Mons (17 Place Warocqué, 7000 Mons) from 1.00pm to 3.00pm.
http://www.campuspleinsud.org

• February 23^rd, 2010 - CERMi Seminar

"Theory of Social Returns in Portfolio Choice with Application to Microfinance", by Prof. Dr. Gregor DORFLEITNER (University of Regensburg, DE) (See the notice for more details )

(Link to the photos of this activity)

• February 22^nd, 2010 - Campus Plein Sud - Conference

  "Alternatives économiques et financières à la crise"
  
  Speakers : Prof. Marek Hudon (ULB, SBS-EM / CERMi, Belgium), Prof. Bernard Lietaer (Berkeley University, USA), Dr. Maxime Quijoux (Institut des Hautes Etudes de l’Amérique Latine, France).
  
  Moderator : Prof. Philip Verwimp (ULB / University of Antwerp, Belgium).

  From 12.00 to 2.00pm - Location: Seminar Room of Centre Emile Bernheim (Avenue F.D. Roosevelt 21 - 1050 Brussels)
  http://www.campuspleinsud.org/

  (Link to the photos of this activity)

• February 11^th, 2010 - CERMi Seminar

  "Gender-Discrimination in Microfinance: Why Do Skilled Women Get Smaller Loans?", by Isabelle Agier (Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Visiting Researcher at CERMi) and Prof. Ariane Szafarz (Université Libre de Bruxelles, CERMi) (See the notice for more details )
  

• January 14^th & 15^th, 2010 - Workshop

  "Microfinance’s Contribution to Development Studies: What Interdisciplinary Approaches Add to Microfinance Understanding?"
    
  Co-organized by the University of Oxford and CERMi, this workshop took place in Brussels. See the programme (PDF)

  (Link to the photos of this activity)

• January 7^th, 2010 - CERMi Seminar

"The Role of Credit Officers in the Performance of Microcredit Loans: Evidence from Vivacred in Brazil", by Isabelle AGIER (Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Department of Economics). (See the notice for details - PDF)

2009

• 27/11/2009 - CERMi Research Day

The CERMi Research Day is an opportunity to exchange ideas and see the progression of the research activities of CERMi members (permanent and associate researchers). This year, it will take place at the Faculté Warocqué of the University of Mons from 10.30am to 17.30pm, and it will consists of workshops with scientific presentations and discussants.

• 10/11/09 - CERMi Seminar
  

"The Performance of MFIs : Do Macro Conditions Matter?", by Prof. Niels Hermes (Groningen University, NL).

• 27/10/2009 - CERMi Seminar
  

"Les déterminants du risque opérationnel dans les institutions de microfinance : Une approche organisationnelle et exploratoire", by Hubert Tchakouté Tchuigoua.

• 16/10/2009 - Public Thesis Defense

  Mr. Cyril FOUILLET successfully defended as the first CERMi PhD student his thesis "La construction spatiale de la microfinance en Inde". The CERMi team sincerely congratulates!

• 02-04/06/2009 - First European Research Conference on Microfinance
  
  The First European Research Conference on Microfinance, co-organized by
  CERMi and the European Microfinance Platform, took place in Brussels from 2-4 June 2009. Click here for a selection of scientific papers and pictures, or visit the conference website www.microfinconf.eu.

• 31/03/2009 - CERMi Seminar
  
  by Isabelle Guérin (Institut Français de Développement et Insitut Français de Pondichéry).
  
  
  
• 20/03/2009 - CERMi Seminar
  
  "Microfinance between social utility and financial performance", by Florent Bedecarrats (GRET/CERISE-Université I).
  
  
• 17/03/2009 - CERMi Seminar
  
  "Is there space for rural development in the microfinance industry? The case of the Fondo de Desarollo Local en Nicaragua", by Prof. Johan Bastiaensen (Universiteit Antwerp)
  
  
• 05/03/2009 - CERMi Seminar
  
  "Babyloan - micro credits, great stories", by A.Poissonnier ( Babyloan)
  
  

02/03/2009 – CERMi Seminar

"Comment comprendre la crise alimentaire?", by R.Ridolfi (EC) and A.Waigalo (Centres Faranfaso So, Mali)

2008

• 11/12/2008 - Research Seminar RSAEM and CERMi - Roy Mersland

  In the occasion of a Research Seminar organized jointly by the RSAEM and CERMI, Roy Mersland made an intervention. Roy Mersland is a Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Adger, Norway. His main areas of interest are Micro-entrepreneurship, Microfinance, Microfinance in conflict areas, Self -help microfinance systems (SHGs, ROSCAs, ASCA etc.), Rural Finance, Corporate Governance. He has publications in major journals such as World Development and Journal of International Development also has extensive management and consulting international experience in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.

• 08/12/2008 - Conference with Jonathan Morduch
  
  The CERMi organised a conference with Jonathan Morduch, professor at New York University (NYU) and co-author with Beatriz Armendariz of the well-known book "The Microfinance Promise". He is also the author of numerous articles that have had a tremendous impact in research in Microfinance. With the purpose to honor his contributions in the field of microfinance, Jonathan Murdoch was awarded the ULB Honoris Causa distinction on December 9th, 2008.

• 04/11/2008 - Scientific Cooperation Agreement
  
  A Scientific Cooperation Agreement will be signed between the CERMi and the Indian Institute of Management of Ahmedabad in the field of Microfinance. The main purpose of this agreement is to facilitate exchanges of professors, scientists and technical staff for short and medium periods of time and to encourage joint research activities, organisation of conferences, seminars and symposiums. This agreement will be officially signed in New Delhi, India, during the first week of November 2008. This event will be honored with the presence of His Majesty Albert II, King of the Belgians. Professor Marek Hudon will participate to this event as CERMi representative.
  
  
  
• 08/10/2008 - Opening Ceremony
  
  Syed Hashemi will be presenting a conference during the opening ceremony of the European Microfinance Programme. Syed Hashemi holds a PhD in Economics from the University of California at Riverside, and is currently Senior Microfinance Specialist at the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP, the major public and private funding institutions consortium).
  
  
  
• 01/10/2008 - CERMi research seminars
  
  In the framework of the CERMi research seminars (lunch time conferences), CERMi will host Robert Lensink. Professor in Finance and Financial Markets at the Faculty of Economics, University of Groningen (The Netherlands) and Professor of Development Economics at the University of Wageningen (The Netherlands). He is a research associate of CERMi and teaches a course on banking in microfinance in the European Microfinance Programme (EMP). His main fields of interest are Development Finance, Development Economics, Corporate Finance and International Finance. He has published several books and more than sixty articles in international journals.
  
  Paper presented by Professor R. Lensink - see also powerpoint presentation
  
  
• International conference
  
  Date: Friday 16th May 2008
  Venue: 21 av. Roosevelt, 1050 Brussels
  Title: Gender mainstreaming in Microfinance: Current debates and innovation

           Papers presented during the conference:

• 07/04/2008 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance " :
  
  Prof. Begona Gutierrez Nieto is a member of the Accounting and Finance Department (Universidad de Zaragoza, Spain). She holds a Ph.D. in Economical and managerial sciences. Her areas of research are: microcredit in Spain, and financial and accounting analysis of microfinance institutions.
  
  Prof. Cecilio Mar Molinero is the Director of MSc in Management Science and MSc in Management Science with Computing of the Kent Business School (UK). He has recently worked in efficiency analysis, and has developed models for input/output selection. These models have been applied to bank branches and microfinance institutions, and to the assessment of insurance risk.
  
  
  Title: A DEA approach to MFI efficiency - See also Powerpoint Presentation

  
  
  
• 13/03/2008 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance " :
  
  Prof. Isabelle Guérin is a member of the “Institut de Recherche pour le Développement” (Université de Provence, France) and an associate researcher at the Centre Walras (“Institut des Sciences de l’Homme”, Lyon, France).  Her research areas are financial exclusion, entrepreneurship in microfinance, social justice, and gender inequalities.

Title: Clientelism and Brokerage as Risk Management in Microfinance,  Case Study in South India - See also Powerpoint Presentation

• 05/03/2008 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance " :
  
  Prof. Cécile Lapenu holds a PhD in agricultural economics from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure Agronomique de Montpellier and was a Post-doctoral fellow at IFPRI (International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington DC, USA). She is currently the General Secretary of the “Comité d’Echange, de Reflexion et d’Information sur les Systèmes d’Epargne-crédit” network (CERISE, France). She is currently a visiting professor in the European Master in Microfinance (Académie-Wallonie-Bruxelles, Belgium).

  Title: Social performance, Impact and Governance: a Global Framework for Assessing and Improving the Social Utility of Microfinance
  
  Click here for slide show

• 17/03/2008 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance " :
  
  Mr Fouad Abdelmoumni founded the Association Al Amana and is up till today the General Manager of this MFI. Between 2003 and 2005, he exercised the post of Chairman of the board of Sanabel, a network of MFI’s in the Arabic countries. Since this year 2008, M. Abdelmoumni has become member of the Executive Committee of CGAP. M. Abdelmoumni is also very active in the domain of civil society. He was and often still is member of, among others, AfriMAP (African Governance, Monitoring and Advocacy) and AMDH (Moroccan Human Rights Association), and founded TrustAfrica (a foundation for peace, economical prosperity and social justice) and Espace Associatif, an NGO for the advancement of civil society and democracy.

  Title: Challenges in the development of the microfinance sector in the Middle-East and the Mediterranean countries - Click here to see the invitation
  

• 21/02/2008 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance " :
  
  Prof. James Copestake is a member of the Centre for Development Studies (University of Bath, UK). He teaches development economics and is Director of Studies for postgraduate research students in international development. He carries out his own research in the fields of agrarian change, microfinance, poverty, social protection and aid management, mainly in India, Zambia, Malawi, Bolivia and Peru.

  Title: Microfinance, mental models and wellbeing - Click here for abstract
  
  

• 12/02/2008 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance " :
  
  Mr. Paolo Casini is a PhD student working under the supervision of Prof. Georg Kirchsteiger at ECARES (ULB). He holds a degree in Economics from the Università “G.d’Annunzio”, Pescara, and an MA in Economics and Statistics from Université Libre de Bruxelles (Belgium). His research interests are Microfinance, Microeconomics and Industrial Organization.

Title: Competition and Altruism in Microcredit Market

2007

• 18/12/2007 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance " :
  

  Speaker : Anaïs Hamelin

  Title : "Les limites de l’utilisation du micro crédit dans la lutte contre la pauvreté : le cas du travail des enfants" 

  Participants : Sylvie Fanta, Marek Hudon, Jean Chirac Kindu Mundeke Mushagaluk, Marc Labie, Miriam Lemmens, Pierre-Guillaume Méon, Anaïs Périlleux, Kyoko Sakuma, Mathias Schmit, Ariane Szafarz,  Ritha Sukadi, Diana Vasquez.
  
  

• 14/12/2007 - Symposium : "Journée franco-belge de la Microfinance" in Lyon (France)
  

  Project Tournesol

  Speakers : Célestin Mayoukou (CARE, Université de Rouen) ; Jean-Michel Servet (IUED, Université de Genève) ; Dorothée Masquita (Université de Rouen)

  ULB speakers  : Anaïs Périlleux; Laurent Gheeraert ; Ritha Sukadi ; Marek Hudon
  
  Click here to find the program of the symposium
  

• 30/11/2007 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance" :
  

  Speaker : Mankash Sriram

  Title: "Financial Flows of the Rural Poor: A study in Dungarpur District, India"

  Participants : Sylvie Fanta, Marek Hudon, Anaïs Périlleux, Ariane Szafarz,  Ritha Sukadi, Diana Vasquez.
  

• 26-27-28/11/2007 : "Microfinance Week in Luxembourg"
  

  Participants from CERMi : Marek Hudon, Marc Labie, Anaïs Périlleux, Ritha Sukadi, Sylvie Fanta, Ludovic Urghege, Ephrem Niyongabo.
  

• 01/11/2007 : "Colloque : La microfinance au Maroc"
  

  Study days on microfinance in Morocco. The colloquium was be held in Casablanca in partnership with Hassan II Aïn Chock University of Casablanca. The objective of the study day is the presentation of the last projects of researchers in microfinance of both institutions and also the setup of a new partnership for future collaborations between both universities.

  Click here to find the program of the colloquium

  In the framework of the Van Buuren project

  Speakers from CERMi : Anaïs Périlleux, Ritha Sukadi, Annabel Vanroose, Diana Vasquez

  Participants from CERMi : Sylvie Fanta, Marek Hudon, Marc Labie, Miriam Lemmens, Gabriele Merli,  Pierre-Guillaume Méon, Aurélie Rousseaux, Ariane Szafarz,  Daniel Traça, Ludovic Urgeghe.
  

• 26/10/2007 : "Colloque : Journée franco-belge de la Microfinance"
  

  Project Tournesol

  Speakers from Lyon : Eddy Bloy, Cyril Fouillet, Jean-Marc Servet

  Speakers from ULB : Sylvie Fanta, Marek Hudon, Marc Labie

  Participants : Céline Cops, Nicolas Görtz, Joël Ludvigsen, Hisham Majbar, Ephrem Niyongabo, Anaïs Périlleux, Jonathan Prado, Grégory Rayee, Ariane Szafarz,  Ritha Sukadi, Daniel Traça, Ludovic Urgeghe, Annabel Vanroose, Diana Vasquez, Laurent Weill.
  

• 10/10/2007 :
  

  Launch of the European Research Centre in Microfinance. Debate- conference by Professor Beatriz Armendariz Harvard University.

  Click here to download a resume of this ceremony.
  
  
• 09/10/2007 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance" :
  

  Speaker: Annabel Vanroose

  Title: "The uneven development of the microfinance sector"

  Participants : Sylvie Fanta, Marek Hudon, Marc Labie, Anaïs Périlleux, Ariane Szafarz, Ritha Sukadi, Diana Vasquez.
  

• 02/10/2007 - "CERMi Seminars in Microfinance" :
  
  Presentation of the CERMi to Béatriz Armendariz

  Participants: Sylvie Fanta, Marek Hudon, Miriam Lemmens, Gabriele Merli, Anaïs Périlleux, Ariane Szafarz,  Ritha Sukadi, Annabel Vanroose, Diana Vasquez.