In the early 1990s, a consensus emerged among the leading experts in the field of small and micro business finance. It is based on three elements: The focus of projects should be on improving the entire financial sector of a given developing country; a commercial approach should be adopted,...

Zugang zu Krediten ist für kleine und mittelgroße Unternehmen in Entwicklungsländern von großer Bedeutung, um ihre ökonomischen Möglichkeiten besser auszuschöpfen und so die Einkommen ihrer Besitzer, aber auch ihrer Mitarbeiter zu erhöhen. Deshalb hat die Entwicklungshilfe in der...

The paper is a follow-up to an article published in Technique Financière etDeveloppement in 2000 (see the appendix to the hardcopy version), which portrayedthe first results of a new strategy in the field of development finance implemented inSouth-East Europe. This strategy consists in creating...

This paper estimates the impact of registering for taxes on firm profits in Bolivia, the countrywith the highest levels of informality in Latin America. A new survey of micro and small firmsenables us to control for a rich set of measures of owner ability and business motivations thatcan affect...

Small and informal firms account for a large share of employment in developing countries.The rapid expansion of microfinance services is based on the belief that these firms haveproductive investment opportunities and can enjoy high returns to capital if given theopportunity...