This webinar constituted the fifth installment of the Taking Savings Groups on the Road webinar series

Savings Groups in Colombia have reached more than 120,000 people in large part thanks to the vision and support of the Colombian government. In fact, in 2008 the government began a process of funding Savings Groups pilots through the Banca de las Oportunidades in an effort to increase coverage of unbanked populations. This webinar explores the experience of IED-VITAL in leading the formation of groups in Colombia in partnership with the government. Guiovanny Mendoza and Carlos Caceres of IED VITAL discussed the origins of the partnership and lessons learned on how to engage the government, all while sharing the challenges and opportunities of this approach.

Speakers:

Carlos Caceres of IED VITAL

Carlos Caceres Soto is an engineer with a specialization in project management and market management with a diploma in Finance and Relationship Marketing. He has 24 years of experience in commercial project management, logistics, and the systematization of processes in the rural and urban consumer and energy sectors. He has 7 years of planning and operational management experience in innovative social and economic development projects for low-income populations, including microfinance products for self-managed savings groups. Additionally, he has directed technical assistance projects to share methodologies, and develop public-private partnerships and participatory models of social and economic self-management.

Carlos Madridejos of IED VITAL