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Making it big in the world of small money

Despite their diverse academic background, all of them have a common degree in mind - and no, it’s not the MBA.

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KOLKATA: Nitish Kasbekar, Ayantika Bhave and Aniruddha Roy, all three from leading colleges in Mumbai, New Delhi and Kolkata respectively, are studying sociology, botany and economics.

Despite their diverse academic background, all of them have a common degree in mind - and no, it’s not the MBA.

Wanting to do something for the agricultural and small-scale sector, these three graduates want to make it big in the world of microfinance.

So they’re turning to the diploma in microfinance being offered by Sa-Dhan, an association of community development finance institutions, and the Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (IIBF).

Registration for the long-distance course, the first in the country, will begin in June 2008 and the first exam will be held in December 2008.

“I am aware that the job may not be among the highest paying ones given the mandate of the sector and the segment that it serves,” said Aniruddha, of Presidency College, Kolkata. “But there is a need for students like us to take this up as a challenge and serve the microfinance sector.”

Mathew Titus, executive director, Sa-dhan, agrees. “The microfinance sector has not only grown in size and coverage in recent years, but has also come into greater focus in the last year because of its important role in achieving financial discipline,” Titus told DNA Money.

And what sort of a career can one expect?
“As a career option, the microfinance professional is unlikely to be highly lucrative in monetary terms,” Titus says. “However, once the sector grows and gets integrated with the mainstream finance sector, there will be greater prospects.”

The diploma course in microfinance is open to all graduates, but candidates with three years work experience in the sector may see their minimum eligibility criteria relaxed.
The course content, which includes an overview of the purpose, outlook and shape of the microfinance sector, was decided by the Union finance ministry early this month.

According to Titus, growth in the microfinance sector is the way to end financial exclusion.

“We need more people in this sector. Also, some existing people should take up the development of new microfinance institutions. This will happen if people in the sector get professional qualifications and hence the course,” he said.

Sa-Dhan, with its 197-member organisations across the country, has a gross outstanding of Rs 1,700 crore.

It provides financial services including credit, saving, insurance, pension and money transfer to the poor and marginalised.

Bankers are keen to brush up their knowledge in this area.
Uma Subramaniam, chief manager, in a leading public sector bank who had shuttled between a number of departments like industrial finance, IT, treasury and now recovery, feels that a long distance course like this will help her concentrate on this segment, in which she finds a lot of interest.

“Being in a public sector bank, I had a rural posting stint where opportunities of microfinance are immense. Learning the finer nuances like risk management, revenue models, accounting and financial analysis in microfinance will give me a professional edge,” the chief manager told DNA Money.
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