By Primrose Kobusingye
On November 27, 2022, the world woke up to the grim news of the passing of Rupert Scofield (73). He has been described as the founder of micro-finance. In 1984, along with John Hatch, Rupert conceived an idea to form a village bank that gives people access to no collateral loans through a collective guarantee. This marked the start of the Foundation for International Community Assistance commonly known as FINCA whose impact has spread to 5 continents and 17 banks and Microfinance institutions across the world with a major focus on women.
FINCA is a catalyst for economic inclusion for the poor. Over the years, it has enabled millions of hard-working people to gain access to much-needed financial services and life-changing products that improve their quality of life and help them achieve their dreams.
It is more than apparent to say that Rupert was highly driven by his moral rank to create a lasting impact on the world. It was never about himself. This is why not a lot is documented about Rupert Scofield but rather a lot is documented about his work through FINCA.
To date, FINCA has more than 2.9 Million customers worldwide with a loan portfolio of USD 683 million and an average loan size of USD 1,200. Haiti leads the agenda of women inclusion with 89 per cent of its customers as women followed by Jordan with 78 percent. Pakistan has more than 1.2 million customers and the highest average loan portfolio of USD 800. Worldwide, FINCA has impacted more than 4.5 million. It has also created more than 1.8 million jobs and has a workforce of 7,609 employees in the network.
FINCA works to end the cycle of poverty. This was what drove Rupert to the last day. He wanted to create lasting solutions that provide people with the capital and life-changing products and services they need to raise their standard of living. Something we can all acknowledge he attained during his journey in this world. In fact, later in life, Rupert sought to empower poor communities by enabling them to access affordable renewable energy solutions through BrightLife, a company he formed with other energy enthusiasts. They viewed access to clean energy as one of the key drivers of the transformation of poor communities.
In his tribute, Hon Daudi Migereko- a co-founding Board member of FINCA Uganda noted that Rupert’s work in micro-finance can only be compared to that of Yunus Muhammad of the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh. A global sensation on all issues micro-finance!
“We have all lost a great person who has made major contribution to humanity by focusing on the economic empowerment of the poor through the FINCA Village Banking Model. In my view, the only other person who has attained comparable credentials in the field of Micro-Finance/ Credit is Yunus Muhammad of the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh,” he noted.
Rupert’s innovation in microfinance was impeccable and influenced a lot of policymakers and financial services policy around the world.
New studies are emerging, relating poverty lines to the level of education- especially financial education. They allude to the fact that an educated community is likely to be much healthier and able to live above the poverty level. If a community’s financial literacy level is high, it has a direct correlation to their investment and savings pattern. A route that FINCA seeks to explore with its financial education outreach.
In his last act as CEO of FINCA International, a day before his passing, Rupert penned a letter to us – his FINCA family that reads less as a farewell and more as a call to arms. “The past 40 years have been more than we had a right to dream of, the next 40 hold the potential to be nothing less than revolutionary,” he wrote. “I am not just hopeful for that revolution. I am relying on you to lead it.”
We shall immensely miss Rupert- however, for as long as there are still poor people and communities in this world, his work can never be done. Let us all take heed to this call! For Rupert!
Rest well gentle giant.
Primrose Kobusingye, is the Marketing Manager, FINCA Uganda