Original alignment date: 2015
Metrics to measure smallholder agricultural finance, developed by CSAF members.
The Council on Smallholder Agricultural Finance (CSAF) is an alliance of social lending institutions focused on creating a thriving, sustainable and transparent financial market to serve the financing needs of small and growing agricultural business in low- and middle- income countries worldwide. Together, CSAF members identify best practices and develop industry standards across three areas: market growth for agricultural businesses in the “missing middle,” responsible lending principles, and social and environmental impact for rural households, communities and ecosystems.
The lenders in CSAF worked together to identify 6 IRIS metrics that collectively tell a concise story about the scale of the lenders’ impact. The council members track these shared metrics within their organizations and share them on an annual basis. Since formally launching the council in 2014, CSAF members have used these results as a baseline against which to track the growth of their impact in future years, and upon which to add additional metrics.