Philippine Postal Savings Bank launches new Microfinance program

Microfinance: Philippines


For readers out there who never thought their post office could double as a bank... think again.

Japan Post is said to be the largest holder of personal savings accounts in the world, with 224 trillion yen ($2.1 trillion) in household savings assets. The holding account for 25% of total household savings in Japan. Pretty substantial no?

The Philippine Postal Savings Bank (PPSB) has just announced it plans to launch a new microfinance facility for drivers and conductors belonging to transport cooperatives or associations accredited/ registered with the Philippines Office of Transportation Cooperatives.


"Under the microfinance facility, a transport cooperative or association can avail of an interest-free and no-collateral capital seed fund amounting to P5,000 per beneficiary. A group of 30 beneficiaries can borrow maximum of P150,000 for a one-year term."

Click here to read more on this development from Business World Online

International Trade Perspective from the Philippines

Developing countries in the region should avoid hiking barriers against imports and should instead deepen economic links with other poor nations to cope with the global economic downturn, a United Nations agency said.

The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), in a policy brief, proposed such measures to "ensure that the region can minimize the negative impact of the current crisis."

A Philippine economist agreed with the recommendation to trade more with other developing countries but said demand might not be comparable with that of richer markets.

But a pro-industry group countered this, saying the Philippines should hike tariffs at least to the internationally agreed ceilings to protect domestic producers.

The UNESCAP report noted that "Developing countries still rely greatly on exports to the United States, the European Union and Japan to generate GDP (gross domestic product)."

"Using intraregional trade as a cushion against the contraction of exports to developed countries will depend on strengthening domestic demand and restructuring it to support intraregional trade," the report said.

Deepening "South-South" economic cooperation, or links between developing countries, may boost trade and also lead to the transfer of technology and technical knowledge, the UNESCAP report said.

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