To reduce the number of unbanked people by a third within the next five years, Héritier implements a strategic approach involving federating, structuring, professionalizing, and formalizing local village savings and credit groups through financial training and structural support. His organization, RAVEC, also connects these groups to health insurance and access to BCECOLOANS, the social financial institution established by Héritier to provide savings accounts and loans. The overarching objective is to create economically vibrant communities where every individual has a bank account by 2030.
The process involves studying community needs, raising awareness about RAVEC’s services, and forming solidarity groups. Members receive financial literacy training and learn about banking, rights to loans, and business guidance. Leveraging Héritier’s blockchain technology, RAVEC ensures secure and transparent transactions by local agents, who earn a percentage of transactions for clients and new accounts. Each Proximity Banking Agent, mobilized by Héritier, is expected to serve 7,500 unbanked individuals. They conduct market research, open new accounts, and establish savings and loan groups. Agents use RAVEC’s software to ensure secure transactions, governance, and fraud prevention.
Once community members are sensitized to form a solidarity group, they are informed about RAVEC’s approach to social protection and health insurance. Upon joining, members are educated to co-finance their health insurance for only $20 a year, renewable annually. They are encouraged to show solidarity towards fellow RAVEC members, understanding that their contribution aids in treating other members even if they remain healthy throughout the year.
Héritier strategically implements health insurance to build healthy communities. Affordable and accessible options ensure financial protection for medical expenses, alleviate healthcare costs, and promote preventive care. Prioritizing community members’ well-being, this initiative contributes to overall development and prosperity. To ensure access to quality healthcare and prevent financial strain due to unpredictable and excessive medical expenses, RAVEC provides 80% coverage for medical care throughout the year for its members and their families upon joining. In return, each member contributes $20 annually to RAVEC for their insurance, regardless of the number of illnesses or the total bill. RAVEC members either contribute the annual fee or co-finance their insurance with low-interest loans from their group. RAVEC covers the remaining 80% of their medical bills through interest from the invested annual fees. In this way, members ultimately become 100% financiers of their health insurance.
To ensure timely access to quality healthcare, RAVEC contracts with reputable hospitals that provide medical care under RAVEC’s guarantee. RAVEC has established a digital channel for quick assistance requests and provides mobile means for patient transportation to the hospital. In addition to the 80% medical coverage, RAVEC has a permanent medical advisor available 24/7 to offer free medical advice to its members.
RAVEC plays a pivotal role in organizing communities into savings and credit groups, facilitating access to essential financial services. Héritier has gone one step further by establishing BCECOLOANS, a local financial institution where savings and loan groups can open accounts and access larger loans. Once groups undergo financial education with their banking agent, their group can join BCECOLOANS, making it convenient for individuals to open bank accounts and access financial services without extensive travel. By simplifying the application process and reducing collateral requirements, BCECOLOANS has enhanced accessibility for unbanked communities. BCECOLOANS, under RAVEC’s nonprofit umbrella, provides groups with borrowing limits linked to their savings. Individual accounts are offered as businesses grow, enabling access to larger loans. By focusing on community needs, BCECOLOANS aims to enhance financial inclusion in rural and peri-urban DRC areas.
Héritier also mobilizes collaborations with local, national, and international partners, recognizing their strategic value to multiple RAVEC’s impact. For scalability, Héritier collaborates with various technical partners, including foundations, NGOs and international development agencies such as the World Bank (through Project TRANSFORMER), as well as financial partners including VISA Foundation and European development agencies, to serve poor and rural areas.
For example, Agence Francaise de Development (AFD) contributed to a six-month capacity-building program and provided financing for new branch offices, resulting in a significant increase in beneficiaries for scaling RAVEC work across the DRC. They also financed digital software for BCECOLOANS, resulting in a doubling of loaning numbers. Additionally, AFD provided financing of 600,000 Euros. Swiss cooperation further supported the initiative with a financing of 190,000 USD to include women beneficiaries and street youths in accessing financial services. The Segal Family Foundation contributed 49,500 USD for women’s empowerment.
These partnerships are crucial for scaling Héritier’s model, enabling the opening of free banking accounts for underprivileged community members, enhancing efficiency and coordination, leading to improved regulations, better conditions, and increased impact, thereby maximizing the funding’s effectiveness in promoting financial inclusion and development. Membership in RAVEC, which involves individuals, organizations, and institutions contributing financial support through affiliation fees and savings, as well as volunteers from the USA and France engaged in fundraising efforts, is vital for providing credit and facilitating the overall development of RAVEC’s initiatives, enabling positive impacts and fostering development in the community.
RAVEC network and Héritier actively shape the financial sector through the annual "Social Microfinance and Entrepreneurship Summit," convening stakeholders to challenge existing policies and advocate for improved financial frameworks benefiting the impoverished. This event promotes social microfinance for financial inclusion and empowerment of disadvantaged families. Recommendations from the summit are submitted to influence the update of outdated microfinance laws hindering financial inclusion. Following last year’s summit, a roadmap led to the drafting of a new microfinance law proposal in the DRC, replacing the outdated 2002 law. In 2019, advocacy efforts influenced the issuance of a new administrative instruction for the microfinance sector’s expansion.
Héritier’s focus on training new agents aims to expand the network to 93 territories by 2030, spanning 10 provinces, fostering financial inclusion and economic growth. RAVEC encourages its members to become independent banking agents. These proximity agents are themselves selected from RAVEC and BCECOLOANS beneficiaries, ensuring inclusivity and accessibility. Héritier plans to replicate this successful model in Burundi and Congo Brazzaville in the near future.
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