Guest Lecture on microfinance – a timely discussion
Coming to the closure of the semester the Department along with the Commerce Society conducted a guest lecture in relation to the COM 4340 – Development Economics course under the title “Would microfinance be a tool to reinstate rural enterprises in response to the new normal?” It was a timely discussion where the economy is struggling to overcome the adverse effects of COVID-19 pandemic situations and how microfinance can be used as a tool to strengthen the rural community was worthy to discuss.
The session was conducted via Zoom Meeting Platform on the 24th of March 2021 from 05.30 pm onwards and the resource person for the evening was Mr Imran Nafeer who is currently the Chief Consultant of the Ideas Consultancy PVT Ltd and he has extended his service as the Chairman of the Lanka Microfinance Practitioners’ Association (LMPA).
The guest speaker explained different financial sources and the financial services available in the market. He spent considerable time distinguishing microfinance and microcredit laying the ideal foundation for the theme of the session. Rich histories of microfinance practices of Sri Lanka were discussed in depth with more practical applications with hands-on experiences. He elaborated on the massive repercussions of COVID 19 impacts on micro/rural enterprises and how additional capital can reinstate these business operations contributing towards the growth of the economy was discussed in a broad scope. The question and answer session was very useful for the audience where many ideas were brainstormed towards the latter part of the guest lecture.
