The State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) will continue fine-tuning policies on microfinance to achieve the nation’s financial inclusion target, SBV Deputy Governor Dao Minh Tu said at a forum on microfinance held in Ha Noi on Wednesday.

According to Tu, the world currently faces three major challenges, namely poverty, inequality and migration. Financial services (including savings, insurance, money transfer, payment and credit) are an important basis to deal with these global issues and also a premise towards the goal of sustainable, equal and comprehensive development for all in society.

Microfinance can enhance economic conditions for poor customers, providing them development opportunities via the provision of financial services, Tu added.

In addition to facilitating direct access to financial and non-financial services, microfinance organisations also help customers access official financial services, he said.

In Viet Nam, Tu said, microfinance has also confirmed its importance in supporting the poor and low-income people to access financial services. This is considered an effective tool in the country’s poverty reduction strategy, helping Viet Nam reduce the number of poor households from 9.6 per cent in 2012 to 6.7 per cent in 2017.

Therefore, microfinance activities have been acting as a crucial pillar towards achieving financial inclusion, Tu said, adding that its development has also helped cut illegal lending at very high interest rates.

On the sidelines of the forum, an awards ceremony for the Citi – Vietnam Microentrepreneurship Awards 2018 (CMA 2018) took place, with 30 microfinance customers and four microfinance institutions, selected from more than 100 submissions honoured.

The annual awards, funded by Citi Foundation/Citi Bank – Vietnam, aims to recognise microentrepreneurs for using loans effectively and typical microfinance institutions that have contributed to poverty reduction. — VNS