Employer-Based Credit Unions and Co-operatives in Fiji: A Missed Opportunity for Financial Inclusion

This report focuses on the potential role of member based financial institutions (MBFIs) in encouraging financial inclusion in Fiji.

MBFIs have been active in Fiji for over 50 years, but have seen a decline in membership since 1993. Reasons for this include failed management, poor record-keeping, weak supervision and oversight, low member administrative capacity and limited product offerings.

The paper suggests that employer linked MBFIs in Fiji could grow and improve operations by:

• Offering voluntary savings products planned around annual or life cycle events;
• Offering various types of savings products at competitive rates;
• Expanding secured lending to target specific needs or in partnership with companies;
• Introducing quick, short term emergency loans;
• Considering larger urban MBFIs in financial inclusion efforts;
• Making efforts to expand membership of urban MBFIs;
• Linking with new technologies, such as interoperable point of sale (POS) devices and mobile money services to provide better service to their members;
• Forming strategic partnerships with banks and mobile network operators to negotiate preferential rates on services that they do not provide.