This paper examines seven Grameen replicators in the Philippines in terms of their:
* Outreach to the poor;
* Resource mobilization;
* Financial viability and sustainability.
Amongst the seven institutions, The Co-operative Rural Bank of Laguna, Inc. (CRBLI) is singled out for closer inspection for two reasons:
* it is the only institution among the seven which is financial self-reliant and viable, serving both poor and non-poor clients, but poor women in the majority;
* Since 1991, it has been a Grameen Bank replicator, combining regular and Grameen-type operations.
It concludes that:
* CRBLI is profitable with poor, non- poor and very poor women members under a Grameen-type replication scheme;
* However, CRBLI faces three constraints: a limitation in outreach; an unsatisfactory repayment rate; and a weakness in savings mobilization;
* CRBLI's Grameen-type scheme with poor women organised in groups of five has been a success in its outreach, repayment rate, and profitability. Yet, the Bank's management is not enthusiastic.
It recommends the transformation of credit NGOs into formal financial institutions that rely on their own internal resources and cover their costs from the margin.
