Microfinance and WASH integration: The effect of microcredit on latrine uptake in rural Cambodia

University of North Carolina Water & Health Conference (Oct 29- Nov 2, 2012)
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Abstract
Integration of microfinance with an existing sanitation marketing campaign requires time and personnel devoted exclusively to coordination of marketing and lending activities to ensure that the intended integration occurs. In the absence of direct financial incentives for the MFI to participate, a commitment on the part of MFIs to social programming was found to be particularly important as a motivation for continued MFI participation. There is significant interest among community members in using loan to purchase latrines, as measured by loan applications; however, often these customers do not meet the lending criteria established by the MFIs. Important areas for future exploration include measuring the effectiveness of continued sanitation marketing and microfinance integration over a longer time period as well as aligning the loan products available at marketing meetings more closely with the cost of latrines.