Advocacy

The scope of the Advocacy Committee and other clubs provide that they review regulations, laws and draft laws, and listen to comments from members. Recently, it has identified issues and set up a strategy to negotiate with the tax department on withholding tax and penalty issues, discussed the NBC’s usage of the saving symbol for MDI, the chart of accounts and the proposal for the establishment of a credit bureau. It also revised some PRAKAS which have jurisdiction over MFI operations, and responded to politicians who raised their concern regarding payment period delays of MFI clients for one or two years.

In 2010, CMA conducted 42 provincial network meetings with 381 branch managers from all CMA member MFIs in 15 provinces to create a platform through which branch managers could voice their concerns and share their experiences with one another. Towards the end of the year, CMA developed a Terms of Reference and selected chairpersons in 8 provinces to strengthen and gather all Board Members of MFIs to join the meeting and to reach consensus on a diverse set of issues.

Besides these activities, CMA joined various national and international networks, including the ABC, Cambodian Federation of Employers & Business Association (CAMFEBA), Banking with the Poor Network (BWTP) in Singapore, and SEEP Network in Washington DC. CMA also delegated representatives to attend international conferences and workshops, such as Rethinking Microfinance in India, the Asia Network Summit in Singapore, Social Performance Task Force Annual Meeting in Spain, Barefoot MBA on Training of Trainer (TOT) in the Philippines, Global SEEP Network Summit in Washington DC, USA and the National Seminar on Skills Evaluation System in Cooperation with the Private Sector in Japan and Indonesia.