Volume 18, Number 2, December 2023
| Performance of repayment of microcredits granted to VSEs by EMFs during the Covid-19 crisis: An empirical study in the Cameroonian context
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Abstract
Microfinance institutions (MFIs) are formal units that aim to implement poverty reduction programs. In the CEMAC area, particularly Cameroon, the growth of unpaid rates in these institutions has given cause for concern since the start of the COVID-19 crisis. This quantitative study aims to analyze the impact of this health crisis on the repayment performance of microcredits granted to Very Small Enterprises (VSEs) by MFIs. Based on binary logistic regression tests on a sample of 236 micro-entrepreneurs who applied for and obtained financing from MIFED/PCS between 2020 and 2021, the results show that the overall impact of COVID-19 on VSE activity explains the repayment failures observed. However, the control of the supply chain by some VSEs during this crisis helped to boost repayment.
Keywords: Unpaid Rate, MFIs, Covid-19 Crisis, Female Entrepreneurship, Repayment Default, VSEs
JEL Classification: F62, G21, H81