Center Meetings
A weekly center meeting serves as a training ground for CARD, Inc. members for growth and development. It serves as a venue for members to interact with each other, discuss plans and activities, and suggest solutions to problems encountered within the group. This also became a mechanism for CARD, Inc. to monitor the performance on attendance, repayment, and projects of each member. Through the Center Meetings, women are being empowered by teaching them to lead. Each center meeting is being presided by a Center Chief, a CARD, Inc. member who was elected among the group. The Secretary of each center, on the other hand, maintains and preserves the minutes logbook. Further, the Treasurer records the loan repayments, CBU, and MBA payments.
Credit Bureau and Investigation
Being a member of Microfinance Information Data Sharing System (MiDAS), a credit bureau for microfinance institutions in the Philippines, allows CARD, Inc. to share and learn valuable information in the field of microfinance. Through MiDAS’ data sharing system, MFIs can share reports, inquiries, and results on borrower information. (Source: MiDAS Membership Manual)
Center Chief Meeting
Every Quarter, all Center Chiefs in one unit gather together to meet with the Area Manager, Unit Managers, and Account Officers. During this meeting, they give updates on each other’s center while also discussing concerns raised by the members. This also serves as a venue for the Center Chief to gain insightful learnings on how they manage their centers from other center chiefs.
On the other hand, the Unit Manager presents the operational status of the unit including the amount of loans and CBU, among others.
Client Investigation and Loan Validation
To ensure that members only loan the amount they are capable of paying back, Account Officers do a client investigation. Here, they interview the members on their businesses and their purpose for applying for a loan.
The Unit Managers, then, do a final assessment on the amount of loan applied by the member. The UM will also visit the house or business of the member to validate the information gathered by the AO during the initial assessment. Final assessments could also be made by Area Managers and Regional Directors, depending on the amount of loan.
