Lessons learnt in 2021 map way forward

The publication of the annual report not only enables organisations to take stock of past activities and their impact on living conditions of target populations, but also to provide an outlook on major upcoming developments.  

In addition to providing an overview of our activities in 2021, ADA’s annual report therefore contains information on the projects which were implemented under our last strategic plan which ran from 2018 to 2021.

ADA’s activities from 2018 to 2021

Over the last four years, ADA supported over 600 MFIs, 16 professional microfinance associations and networks plus around 50 other types of organisations in accessing finance and in developing and diversifying their services. In addition, ADA helped them to strengthen their governance and management structures as well as their project management capacities. 

Thanks to this extensive support, the number of beneficiaries of financial services increased from 62 000 in 2018 to 160 000 in 2021. On a broader scale, ADA also contributed to improving the regulatory conditions for financial inclusion in five countries. 

A more holistic, new strategy

ADA’s current strategic plan covers the period from 2022 to 2025. It addresses the realisation that meeting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will require a more comprehensive approach than simply giving underbanked people access to financial services. 

Financial services were already increasingly complemented by other services under the previous strategy to ensure our projects have a lasting impact: 40 000 people benefited from non-financial services such as business consulting and financial education in 2021 compared to just 2 600 in 2018.

ADA will strengthen and broaden this holistic approach in its new strategy with the support of Luxembourg’s Development Cooperation. In addition to using inclusive finance to meet the SDGs, ADA’s new strategy will focus on supporting vulnerable households with limited access to basic services such as water and energy, on young entrepreneurs, as well as on small, family-run farms and other actors in agricultural and forestry value chains.
 
The use of digital technology and resilience to climate change will be encouraged in all areas of intervention. As Laura Foschi, ADA’s Managing Director, summarises in a nutshell: “ADA is a driver of partnerships with multiple development actors for sustainable, innovative and impactful inclusive finance”.