Presentations from the 2nd Pricing Transparency Leadership Forum

MFTransparency, in partnership with Planet Rating and under the sponsorship of the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), hosted the second African Microfinance Pricing Transparency Leadership Forum in Nairobi, Kenya from June 18th – 19th 2013. The forum was attended by more than 30 participants, including regulators from 5 African countries as well as industry experts and technical assistance providers from around the world.

Building on the previous event, which took place in October 2011 in Nairobi, Kenya, the second African Microfinance Pricing Transparency Leadership Forum provided a platform for disclosing fresh pricing data from the represented African markets, sharing new developments in transparent pricing regulation, and exchanging experiences in facilitating client protection and pricing disclosure in the microfinance industry.

MFTransparency’s CEO, Chuck Waterfield, delivered trainings on pricing transparency calculations and pricing disclosure policy development. Industry experts also shared their experiences through working sessions under the theme of policies for improve pricing and stakeholder decision-making; including, the different means of constraining lenders – specifically through truth-in-lending approaches and interest rate caps – and the different means of communication to the client and to the market. By the end of the second day of the forum, the participants were able to complete country-focused matrices outlining their current situation and their desired future situation with regards to pricing transparency legislation.

The African Microfinance Pricing Transparency Leadership Forum is part of a larger MFTransparency initiative, also funded by AFD, called the African Regulator Project. Through this project, MFTransparency seeks a lasting impact on the policy and practice of pricing disclosure and client protection in microfinance in Africa. Our goal is to work with policymakers and regulators so that the interests of different stakeholder groups, including clients, financial institutions and funders, are met in a resilient and transparent microfinance industry.

The presentations from the event have been made available here, in the hope that they may help educate others about the importance of pricing transparency