1. Renée Chao Beroff

2. Financial crisis in the North and its impact in the South Is this crisis due to lax regulation and supervision or inadequate regulation and policies in developed countries? Is the relatively good performance of the MFI sector during this crisis in the South, due to the very prudent regulation in place (yet not fully enforced) or due to the responsible governance of most MFIs?

3. Recent challenges in the Microfinance sector Situation differs depending on country Signs of overheat with very high growth Urban micro and small enterprise markets close to saturation Raising PAR Over-indebt ness of a segment of clients

4. Governments' reactions Accelerating process to implement joint Credit Bureaus for Banks and MFIs (ex:Morroco, WAMU/BCEAO) Promoting Consumer Protection Actions and encouraging Financial Education at micro level All very positive attitudes of protection, which is one of the key role of governments

5. Is interest rate part of this debate? Up to now, we have seen very few governments reacting by setting interest rate caps when they did not exist before or lowering them when they were already in place. At least in Africa, many studies commissioned by Central Banks show that high interest rates are still translating high transaction costs and relatively limited scale of operations, not huge profit for shareholders: therefore, putting unrealistic interest caps may only harm the sustainability of the industry than protect clients In such case, one solution is in scaling up and usage of technology to enhance efficiency: policy makers can play very useful roles in facilitating such opportunities

6. Governments working hand in hand with the industry Protection measures can be more effective if developed jointly by the governments and the private sector: Public and private credit bureaus Consumer (and depositor) protection measures: transparency in terms and conditions, deposit insurance, capital adequacy ratio… Good Social Responsibility policies towards clients and communities by MFIs; good lending procedures and practices, right incentives to staff, financial education for clients, promotion of savings

7. Governments working hand in hand with the industry Good and well thought through policies and regulation may be needed in a growing industry It will not replace good governance in the MFIs and a strong commitment from boards and managers for social performance and long term sustainability Investors’ attitudes are also key for success