Goal
To increase economic security and women’s economic empowerment in Democratic Republic of Congo’s artisanal gold mining communities’ sector by supporting miners and community members to establish Village Savings and Loans Associations.
The Context
There is an urgent need for financial services in artisanal gold mining communities. Formal financing such as banks or microfinance institutions haven’t reached most remote communities and often avoid lending to actors in the artisanal gold sector. Many don’t have access to bank accounts or loans. Women are even further disadvantaged.
Instead of counting on banks for their pre-financing, community members and actors in gold mining rely on informal financing. Some may turn to family members to provide loans, but others receive financing from actors in the supply chain. Miners often pay back their financer using a percentage of the gold they have produced, leaving them at risk of receiving unfavourable terms and becoming heavily indebted to gold traders.
The use of informal financing is often a red flag for formal finance and market actors, preventing them from entering relationships with artisanal miners and traders. This creates a cycle for miners and traders. By using informal lenders, they are prevented from accessing formal markets and financing, which in turn leaves them reliant on those very same informal lending sources.
This is where community savings groups come in.
A large variety of micro-finance models have been well established around the world, especially within the agriculture sector. The AFECCOR project is one of the first to document the introduction of the Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA) model to an artisanal gold mining community, and the first to align it with a women’s empowerment approach in the sector.
What We Are Doing
The Artisanal Mining Women’s Empowerment Credit & Savings project, known by its French acronym AFECCOR, supports women and men in artisanal gold mining communities to increase their economic security by establishing Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs). Throughout the project, artisanal miners and community members decrease their reliance on predatory informal credit networks, while fostering social cohesion. AFECCOR also promotes women’s leadership and economic empowerment in their homes, artisanal mine sites, and the wider community.
The project will:
- Implement Village Savings and Loans Associations
- Provide VSLA members with literacy training
- Conduct group discussions on gender equality
- Provide women with business skills training
Project Results
1,453
participants in 50 VSLAs
$3.13
average member savings per month
$45,519
cumulative savings across 50 groups
1,219
loans granted
Story
Meet Ernest, Furaha, and Modestine: How the AFECCOR Project Supports Access to Savings and Credit
Meet three members of an artisanal gold mining community in Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ituri Province: Ernest, Furaha, and Modestine. They share how safe access to savings and credit has […]
Read More for Meet Ernest, Furaha, and Modestine: How the AFECCOR Project Supports Access to Savings and Credit
Story
How Community Savings Groups Support Formalizing the Artisanal Mining Sector
According to the World Bank, only 26 percent of people in Democratic Republic of Congo have a formal bank account. In Mambasa Territory, an artisanal gold mining community in Ituri […]
Read More for How Community Savings Groups Support Formalizing the Artisanal Mining Sector
Story
DRC Communities Look Towards Future as Confidence in their Savings Capacity Grows
Since its launch in 2017 in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, 50 Village Saving and Loans Associations have kicked off activities as part of our Artisanal Mining Women’s Empowerment Credit […]
Read More for DRC Communities Look Towards Future as Confidence in their Savings Capacity Grows
Publication
AFECCOR: Implementing Community Savings Groups in the Artisanal Gold Sector
Read more about the AFECCOR project and its approach to gender-transformative financial inclusion. Read the latest project results.
Read More for AFECCOR: Implementing Community Savings Groups in the Artisanal Gold Sector
Publication
AFECCOR: Supporting Artisanal Gold Mining Communities to Access Savings and Credit
Learn more about how the AFECCOR project supports artisanal gold mining communities to access savings and credit.
Read More for AFECCOR: Supporting Artisanal Gold Mining Communities to Access Savings and Credit
