PlaNet Finance China

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PlaNet Finance China (PFC) (Chinese: 沛丰中国) is a non-profit organization that works for sustainable social and economic development in China by supporting and promoting the microfinance sector. It is the representative office of the international non-profit organization PlaNet Finance Group.

PFC works with partner organizations and offers technical assistance to financial institutions and microfinance institutions (MFIs) that seeks to improve performance, or to extend their portfolios into microcredit and small lending. PFC runs diagnostics on city commercial banks, village banks, and MFIs to help them adopt international best practices with respect to governance, credit risk management, process optimization and cost-efficiency, liquidity management and strategy formation.

PFC is based in Beijing, and has been involved in the Chinese microfinance sector since 2003. Its Executive Director is Gabrielle Harris.

Philosophy

To strengthen microfinance delivery in two ways:

  1. To help small MFIs grow that are trying to get loan services to farmers and entrepreneurs in central and western areas of China
  2. To assist existing regulated financial institutions to efficiently extend their loan portfolio to small loans, using best practice credit and risk management strategies and technologies.

Activities

PFC provides a full set of advisory and technical assistance services to players in microfinance via three business lines:

  • Advisory and technical assistance services
  • Microfinance Plus Programs: Linking microfinance to social development programs, especially in health, education and environment
  • Sectorial support in Microfinance

Projects

The Renewable Energy Project for Tongwei County, Gansu Province

A co-financed project in collaboration with Areva, GDF Suez , the Japanese Government and the European Commission towards developing biogas facilities in Tongwei County through microcredit to the rural population.

The objectives of the Renewable Energy Project:

  • To improve living conditions for rural population of Tongwei County: extended access to energy, greater diversification of agricultural products, boosted crop productivity
  • To increase energy self-sufficiency in some of the more remote rural areas of Tongwei County
  • To promote entrepreneurial activities facilitated by low-cost energy sources: offering support for local market development to matching market demand and to create new product outlets
  • To slow down the environmental degradation of the target area
  • To contribute to the success of a governmental-sponsored project to promote the use of biogas in poor areas
  • To create awareness about collective and individual responsibility for environmental conservation and the growing waste management and disposal

Pfizer & PlaNet Finance Collaboration

It was announced in March 2009 that PF China and Pfizer Inc. are collaborating to conduct an in-depth research project to determine the healthcare needs of the poor in China. The study aims to gauge the current healthcare climate in China, focusing on "the availability and existing sources of medicines, patient purchasing patterns, and the level of access to medical services."