The Role of Savings Groups in Supporting Graduation from Social Safety Nets
In 2019, the SEEP Network convened a Peer Learning Group (PLG) comprised of both government and civil society social protection programmes to explore the Role of Savings Groups in Supporting Graduation from Social Safety Nets. Members of the PLG, as listed in the acknowledgements, included representatives from the governments of Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Senegal as well as two nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) – Trickle Up (working in the Sahel region, with the governments of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mauritania, Niger and Senegal) and The BOMA Project (working in Northern Kenya and Uganda).
Savings Groups are increasingly promoted as a graduation pathway to support beneficiaries of national safety nets to save, build resilience, access formal financial services, andultimately reduce dependency on public support. SEEP Network identifies that Savings Groups have been incorporated into social protection policies and programming across 15 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Over a period of nine months, PLG members consolidated their collective knowledge and experience, and best practices on how to integrate and expand the coverage of SGs within social safety nets policy and programming.
This series of publications are the new learning briefs developed by the SEEP Network Peer Learning Group on The Role of Savings Groups in Supporting Graduation from Social Safety Nets, facilitated by Aisha Rahamatali and George Muruka from CARE International:
Note that the 2020 European Microfinance Award rewards Innovation and Excellence in Financial Inclusion in “Encouraging Effective & Inclusive Savings”.
