Microenterprises and Microfinance in Ecuador: Results of the 2004 Baseline Study of Microenterprises

This document highlights the importance of microfinance and various activities associated with it in Ecuador.

The document discusses the following:

• Definition of microfinance;
• Employment opportunities provided by microfinance activities in Ecuador;
• Current status of microfinance in the country;
• Impact of gender on microenterprises;
• Various business occupations and aspects related to them;
• Issues related to sales and incomes generated from microenterprises;
• Growth, success and various problems associated with starting with microenterprises.

The document further talks about the following:

• Various sources of funding and access to funding for these enterprises;
• Access to other financial services for people in Ecuador;
• Various factors playing an important role in the use of these financial services by microentrepreneurs;
• Roles of microfinance institutions (MFIS)and donors.

The document concludes by discussing the possible lessons that a MFI in Ecuador can learn to improve its service to customers and also to improve its overall performance.