Kiva conducts regular, ongoing monitoring of all Lending Partners, but only posts status updates here in response to relevant, major changes at the partner.

Partner description:

VisionFund Rwanda (VFR), formerly known as Vision Finance Company, is the microfinance subsidiary of World Vision and is one of the largest microfinance institutions serving rural underprivileged communities in Rwanda, many of which do not have access to formal financial services. VFR started in 1997 as a microfinance department under World Vision Rwanda and has since grown to become one of the largest regulated microfinance institutions in Rwanda today.
 
VFR serves people and communities that are economically productive but low-income, especially in very rural areas. This includes small business owners and salary earners who are looking for opportunities to provide better lives for their families and a promising future for their children.
 
The average client of VFR is a woman, often widowed, looking after a family of 5-7, some of whom are orphans. She owns a small business, usually a market stall in a market or a roadside kiosk. She believes she can grow her business to support her family, sending her children to school and to providing for their health and welfare.
 
A unique lending approach:
 
VFR services communities with 3 main types of loans: community banks, solidarity groups and individual loans. Community banks create an opportunity for the poorest entrepreneurs to obtain credit. These are self-selected groups of 10 - 30 borrowers who agree to cross-guarantee each other’s loans. The group screens potential borrowers and tracks each repayment, building their leadership and sense of pride along the way.
 
Solidarity groups are designed for more experienced entrepreneurs with slightly larger enterprises. They have fewer members than community banks, with an average of 5 members who guarantee each other’s loans. Members who make repayments on time become eligible for larger individual loans.
 
Individual loans go to borrowers who have either grown their businesses successfully through a solidarity group or who have medium-sized businesses that qualify for these larger loans.  The individual loans typically require either 2 guarantors or collateral. Borrowers often create a multi-year business plan in consultation with their loan officer.

Repayment Performance on Kiva

    This Lending Partner All Kiva Partners
  Start Date On Kiva May 24, 2008 Oct 12, 2005
Total Loans $7,917,505 $1,999,972,715
Amount of raised Inactive loans $0 $557,650
Number of raised Inactive loans 0 203
Amount of Paying Back Loans $417,370 $153,956,230
Number of Paying Back Loans 313 181,893
Amount of Ended Loans $7,500,135 $1,810,017,340
Number of Ended Loans 5,566 2,432,231
Delinquency Rate 8.40% 11.50%
Amount in Arrears $19,837 $10,715,938
Outstanding Portfolio $205,482 $93,157,824
Number of Loans Delinquent 77 46,269
Default Rate 1.45% 1.84%
Amount of Ended Loans Defaulted $109,062 $33,278,852
Number of Ended Loans Defaulted 215 87,208
Currency Exchange Loss Rate 0.93% 0.48%
Amount of Currency Exchange Loss $74,603 $12,335,694
Refund Rate 0.44% 0.54%
Amount of Refunded Loans $34,900 $10,873,075
Number of Refunded Loans 30 9,630

Loan Characteristics On Kiva

    This Lending Partner All Kiva Partners
  Loans to Women Borrowers 63.42% 78.34%
Average Loan Size $324 $392
Average Individual Loan Size $921 $587
Average Group Loan Size $2,046 $1,903
Average number of borrowers per group 9.3 8.3
Average GDP per capita (PPP) in local country $1,700 $5,595
Average Loan Size / GDP per capita (PPP) 19.07% 7.01%
Average Time to Fund a Loan 11.68 days 9.02 days
Average Dollars Raised Per Day Per Loan $27.74 $43.51
  Average Loan Term 9.54 months 11.48 months

Journaling Performance on Kiva

    This Lending Partner All Kiva Partners
  Total Journals 3,034 1,199,432
  Journaling Rate 46.52% 42.11%
  Average Number of Comments Per Journal 0.06 0.02
  Average Number of Recommendations Per Journal 0.76 0.56

Borrowing Cost Comparison (based on 2016 data)

    This Lending Partner Median for MFI's in Country All Kiva Partners
  Average Cost to Borrower 41% PY 31.00% PY 26.87% PY
  Profitability (return on assets) 2.2% -3.2% -2.44%
  Average Loan Size (% of per capita income) N/A 81.00% 0.00%

Country Fast Facts

Country:
Rwanda
Capital:
Kigali
Official Language:
Kinyarwanda only (official) 93.2%, Kinyarwanda and other language(s) 6.2%, French (official) and other language(s) 0.1%, English (official) and other language(s) 0.1%, Swahili 0.02%, other 0.03%, unspecified 0.3%
Population:
12,337,138
Avg Annual Income:
$1,700
Labor Force:
agriculture: 90%, industry and services: 10%
Population Below Poverty Line:
44.90%
Literacy Rate:
70.50%
Infant Mortality Rate (per 1000):
59.59 deaths
Life Expectancy:
N/A years

Lending Partner Staff

Diane Abahawenase
Ida Ingabire
Aline INYUMBA
Solange Kamikazi
Pascal Mulindwa Bukuru
Jonas NDAYAMBAJE
Gavin Sword