PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
MICROFINANCE, ACCESS TO FINANCIAL SERVICES AND THE G8 (13 June 2005)

That this House recognises the importance of microcredit in achieving one of the major millennium development goals, that of cutting absolute poverty in half by 2015; notes that microfinance is a crucial component in breaking the cycle of poverty and aid dependence and is proven to be successful and sustainable in alleviating poverty; believes that inclusion of the poor in financial services is a fundamental condition for economic and social growth and that microfinance is under-utilised within the programmes of international finance institutions; recognises that serious action is needed to reach the huge numbers of financially-excluded which was recognised at the 2004 G8 Sea Island Summit and hopes that it will also be noted at this year's G8 Summit at Gleneagles; acknowledges that access to microfinance and rural finance is beginning to address these needs but that much more remains to be done; and calls on the G8 summit to encourage the World Bank, IMF, African Development Bank, African Central Banks and finance ministries to give microfinance an increased emphasis in view of the UN Year of Microcredit 2005 and the Commission for Africa's call for a focus on Access to Financial Services.

Sponsored by:
Annette Brooke (Liberal Democrat)