[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2844 Placed on Calendar Senate (PCS)]






                                                       Calendar No. 670
106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2844

                          [Report No. 106-335]

To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the provision 
        of assistance to increase the availability of credit to 
    microenterprises lacking full access to credit, to establish a 
          Microfinance Loan Facility, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 11, 2000

   Mr. Helms, from the Committee on Foreign Relations, reported the 
    following original bill; which was read twice and placed on the 
                                calendar

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the provision 
        of assistance to increase the availability of credit to 
    microenterprises lacking full access to credit, to establish a 
          Microfinance Loan Facility, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Microenterprise for Self-Reliance 
Act of 2000''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS OF POLICY.

    Congress makes the following findings and declarations:
            (1) According to the World Bank, more than 1,200,000,000 
        people in the developing world, or one-fifth of the world's 
        population, subsist on less than $1 a day.
            (2) Over 32,000 of their children die each day from largely 
        preventable malnutrition and disease.
            (3)(A) Women in poverty generally have larger work loads 
        and less access to educational and economic opportunities than 
        their male counterparts.
            (B) Directly aiding the poorest of the poor, especially 
        women, in the developing world has a positive effect not only 
        on family incomes, but also on child nutrition, health and 
        education, as women in particular reinvest income in their 
        families.
            (4)(A) The poor in the developing world, particularly 
        women, generally lack stable employment and social safety nets.
            (B) Many turn to self-employment to generate a substantial 
        portion of their livelihood. In Africa, over 80 percent of 
        employment is generated in the informal sector of the self-
        employed poor.
            (C) These poor entrepreneurs are often trapped in poverty 
        because they cannot obtain credit at reasonable rates to build 
        their asset base or expand their otherwise viable self-
        employment activities.
            (D) Many of the poor are forced to pay interest rates as 
        high as 10 percent per day to money lenders.
            (5)(A) The poor are able to expand their incomes and their 
        businesses dramatically when they can access loans at 
        reasonable interest rates.
            (B) Through the development of self-sustaining microfinance 
        programs, poor people themselves can lead the fight against 
        hunger and poverty.
            (6)(A) On February 2-4, 1997, a global Microcredit Summit 
        was held in Washington, District of Columbia, to launch a plan 
        to expand access to credit for self-employment and other 
        financial and business services to 100,000,000 of the world's 
        poorest families, especially the women of those families, by 
        2005. While this scale of outreach may not be achievable in 
        this short time-period, the realization of this goal could 
        dramatically alter the face of global poverty.
            (B) With an average family size of five, achieving this 
        goal will mean that the benefits of microfinance will thereby 
        reach nearly half of the world's more than 1,000,000,000 
        absolute poor people.
            (7)(A) Nongovernmental organizations, such as those that 
        comprise the Microenterprise Coalition (such as the Grameen 
        Bank (Bangladesh,) K-REP (Kenya), and networks such as Accion 
        International, the Foundation for International Community 
        Assistance (FINCA), and the credit union movement) are 
        successful in lending directly to the very poor.
            (B) Microfinance institutions such as BRAC (Bangladesh), 
        BancoSol (Bolivia), SEWA Bank (India), and ACEP (Senegal) are 
        regulated financial institutions that can raise funds directly 
        from the local and international capital markets.
            (8)(A) Microenterprise institutions not only reduce 
        poverty, but also reduce the dependency on foreign assistance.
            (B) Interest income on the credit portfolio is used to pay 
        recurring institutional costs, assuring the long-term 
        sustainability of development assistance.
            (9) Microfinance institutions leverage foreign assistance 
        resources because loans are recycled, generating new benefits 
        to program participants.
            (10)(A) The development of sustainable microfinance 
        institutions that provide credit and training, and mobilize 
        domestic savings, is a critical component to a global strategy 
        of poverty reduction and broad-based economic development.
            (B) In the efforts of the United States to lead the 
        development of a new global financial architecture, 
        microenterprise should play a vital role. The recent shocks to 
        international financial markets demonstrate how the financial 
        sector can shape the destiny of nations. Microfinance can serve 
        as a powerful tool for building a more inclusive financial 
        sector which serves the broad majority of the world's 
        population including the very poor and women and thus generate 
        more social stability and prosperity.
            (C) Over the last two decades, the United States has been a 
        global leader in promoting the global microenterprise sector, 
        primarily through its development assistance programs at the 
        United States Agency for International Development. 
        Additionally, the United States Department of the Treasury and 
        the Department of State have used their authority to promote 
        microenterprise in the development programs of international 
        financial institutions and the United Nations.
            (11)(A) In 1994, the United States Agency for International 
        Development launched the ``Microenterprise Initiative'' in 
        partnership with the Congress.
            (B) The initiative committed to expanding funding for the 
        microenterprise programs of the Agency, and set a goal that, by 
        the end of fiscal year 1996, one-half of all microenterprise 
        resources would support programs and institutions that provide 
        credit to the poorest, with loans under $300.
            (C) In order to achieve the goal of the microcredit summit, 
        increased investment in microfinance institutions serving the 
        poorest will be critical.
            (12) Providing the United States share of the global 
        investment needed to achieve the goal of the microcredit summit 
        will require only a small increase in United States funding for 
        international microcredit programs, with an increased focus on 
        institutions serving the poorest.
            (13)(A) In order to reach tens of millions of the poorest 
        with microcredit, it is crucial to expand and replicate 
        successful microfinance institutions.
            (B) These institutions need assistance in developing their 
        institutional capacity to expand their services and tap 
        commercial sources of capital.
            (14) Nongovernmental organizations have demonstrated 
        competence in developing networks of local microfinance 
        institutions and other assistance delivery mechanisms so that 
        they reach large numbers of the very poor, and achieve 
        financial sustainability.
            (15) Recognizing that the United States Agency for 
        International Development has developed very effective 
        partnerships with nongovernmental organizations, and that the 
        Agency will have fewer missions overseas to carry out its work, 
        the Agency should place priority on investing in those 
        nongovernmental network institutions that meet performance 
        criteria through the central funding mechanisms of the Agency.
            (16) By expanding and replicating successful microfinance 
        institutions, it should be possible to create a global 
        infrastructure to provide financial services to the world's 
        poorest families.
            (17)(A) The United States can provide leadership to other 
        bilateral and multilateral development agencies as such 
        agencies expand their support to the microenterprise sector.
            (B) The United States should seek to improve coordination 
        among G-7 countries in the support of the microenterprise 
        sector in order to leverage the investment of the United States 
        with that of other donor nations.
            (18) Through increased support for microenterprise, 
        especially credit for the poorest, the United States can 
        continue to play a leadership role in the global effort to 
        expand financial services and opportunity to 100,000,000 of the 
        poorest families on the planet.

SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to make microenterprise development an important 
        element of United States foreign economic policy and 
        assistance;
            (2) to provide for the continuation and expansion of the 
        commitment of the United States Agency for International 
        Development to the development of microenterprise institutions 
        as outlined in its 1994 Microenterprise Initiative;
            (3) to support and develop the capacity of United States 
        and indigenous nongovernmental organization intermediaries to 
        provide credit, savings, training, technical assistance, and 
business development services to microentrepreneurs;
            (4) to emphasize financial services and substantially 
        increase the amount of assistance devoted to both financial 
        services and complimentary business development services 
        designed to reach the poorest sector in developing countries, 
        particularly women; and
            (5) to encourage the United States Agency for International 
        Development to coordinate microfinance policy, in consultation 
        with the Department of the Treasury and the Department of 
        State, and to provide global leadership among bilateral and 
        multilateral donors in promoting microenterprise for the 
        poorest of the poor.

SEC. 4. MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT GRANT ASSISTANCE.

    Chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 
U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
section:

``SEC. 131. MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT GRANT ASSISTANCE.

    ``(a) Findings and Policy.--Congress finds and declares that--
            ``(1) the development of microenterprise is a vital factor 
        in the stable growth of developing countries and in the 
        development of free, open, and equitable international economic 
        systems;
            ``(2) it is therefore in the best interest of the United 
        States to assist the development of microenterprises in 
        developing countries; and
            ``(3) the support of microenterprise can be served by 
        programs providing credit, savings, training, technical 
        assistance, and business development services.
    ``(b) Authorization.--
            ``(1) In general.--In carrying out this part, the President 
        is authorized to provide grant assistance for programs to 
        increase the availability of credit and other services to 
        microenterprises lacking full access to capital training, 
        technical assistance, and business development services 
        through--
                    ``(A) grants to microfinance institutions for the 
                purpose of expanding the availability of credit, 
                savings, and other financial services to 
                microentrepreneurs;
                    ``(B) grants to microenterprise institutions for 
                the purpose of training, technical assistance, and 
                business development services for microenterprises to 
                enable them to make better use of credit, to better 
                manage their enterprises, and to increase their income 
                and build their assets;
                    ``(C) capacity-building for microenterprise 
                institutions in order to enable them to better meet the 
                credit and training needs of microentrepreneurs; and
                    ``(D) policy and regulatory programs at the country 
                level that improve the environment for 
                microentrepreneurs and microenterprise institutions 
                that serve the poor and very poor.
            ``(2) Implementation.--Assistance authorized under 
        paragraph (1) shall be provided through organizations that have 
        a capacity to develop and implement microenterprise programs, 
        including particularly--
                    ``(A) United States and indigenous private and 
                voluntary organizations;
                    ``(B) United States and indigenous credit unions 
                and cooperative organizations; or
                    ``(C) other indigenous governmental and 
                nongovernmental organizations.
            ``(3) Targeted assistance.--In carrying out sustainable 
        poverty-focused programs under paragraph (1), 50 percent of all 
        microenterprise resources shall be targeted to very poor 
        entrepreneurs, defined as those living in the bottom 50 percent 
        below the poverty line as established by the national 
        government of the country. Specifically, such resources shall 
        be used for--
                    ``(A) direct support of programs under this 
                subsection through practitioner institutions that--
                            ``(i) provide credit and other financial 
                        services to entrepreneurs who are very poor, 
                        with loans in 1995 United States dollars of--
                                    ``(I) $1,000 or less in the Europe 
                                and Eurasia region;
                                    ``(II) $400 or less in the Latin 
                                America region; and
                                    ``(III) $300 or less in the rest of 
                                the world; and
                            ``(ii) can cover their costs in a 
                        reasonable time period; or
                    ``(B) demand-driven business development programs 
                that achieve reasonable cost recovery that are provided 
                to clients holding poverty loans (as defined by the 
                regional poverty loan limitations in subparagraph 
(A)(i)) whether they are provided by microfinance institutions or by 
specialized business development services providers.
            ``(4) Support for central mechanisms.--The President should 
        continue support for central mechanisms and missions that--
                    ``(A) provide technical support for field missions;
                    ``(B) strengthen the institutional development of 
                the intermediary organizations described in paragraph 
                (2);
                    ``(C) share information relating to the provision 
                of assistance authorized under paragraph (1) between 
                such field missions and intermediary organizations; and
                    ``(D) support the development of nonprofit global 
                microfinance networks, including credit union systems, 
                that--
                            ``(i) are able to deliver very small loans 
                        through a vast grassroots infrastructure based 
                        on market principles; and
                            ``(ii) act as wholesale intermediaries 
                        providing a range of services to microfinance 
                        retail institutions, including financing, 
                        technical assistance, capacity-building and 
                        safety and soundness accreditation.
            ``(5) Limitation.--Assistance provided under this 
        subsection may only be used to support microenterprise programs 
        and may not be used to support programs not directly related to 
        the purposes described in paragraph (1).
            ``(6) Definition.--In this subsection, the term `business 
        development services' means support for the growth of 
        microenterprises through training, technical assistance, 
        marketing assistance, improved production technologies, and 
        other services.
    ``(c) Monitoring System.--In order to maximize the sustainable 
development impact of the assistance authorized under subsection 
(a)(1), the Administrator of the agency primarily responsible for 
administering this part shall establish a monitoring system that--
            ``(1) establishes performance goals for such assistance and 
        expresses such goals in an objective and quantifiable form, to 
        the extent feasible;
            ``(2) establishes performance indicators to be used in 
        measuring or assessing the achievement of the goals and 
        objectives of such assistance;
            ``(3) provides a basis for recommendations for adjustments 
        to such assistance to enhance the sustainable development 
        impact of such assistance, particularly the impact of such 
        assistance on the very poor, particularly poor women; and
            ``(4) provides a basis for recommendations for adjustments 
        to measures for reaching the poorest of the poor, including 
        proposed legislation containing amendments to enhance the 
        sustainable development impact of such assistance, as described 
        in paragraph (3).
    ``(d) Level of Assistance.--Of the funds made available under this 
part and the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989, 
including local currencies, there are authorized to be available 
$150,000,000 during fiscal year 2001.''.

SEC. 5. MICRO- AND SMALL ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT CREDITS.

    Section 108 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151f) 
is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 108. MICRO- AND SMALL ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT CREDITS.

    ``(a) Findings and Policy.--Congress finds and declares that--
            ``(1) the development of micro- and small enterprises are a 
        vital factor in the stable growth of developing countries and 
        in the development and stability of a free, open, and equitable 
        international economic system; and
            ``(2) it is, therefore, in the best interests of the United 
        States to assist the development of the enterprises of the poor 
        in developing countries and to engage the United States private 
        sector in that process.
    ``(b) Program.--To carry out the policy set forth in subsection 
(a), the President is authorized to provide assistance to increase the 
availability of credit to micro- and small enterprises lacking full 
access to credit, including through--
            ``(1) loans and guarantees to credit institutions for the 
        purpose of expanding the availability of credit to micro- and 
        small enterprises;
            ``(2) training programs for lenders in order to enable them 
        to better meet the credit needs of microentrepreneurs; and
            ``(3) training programs for microentrepreneurs in order to 
        enable them to make better use of credit and to better manage 
        their enterprises.
    ``(c) Eligibility Criteria.--The Administrator of the agency 
primarily responsible for administering this part shall establish 
criteria for determining which entities described in subsection (b) are 
eligible to carry out activities, with respect to micro- and small 
enterprises, assisted under this section. Such criteria may include the 
following:
            ``(1) The extent to which the recipients of credit from the 
        entity do not have access to the local formal financial sector.
            ``(2) The extent to which the recipients of credit from the 
        entity are among the poorest people in the country.
            ``(3) The extent to which the entity is oriented toward 
        working directly with poor women.
            ``(4) The extent to which the entity recovers its cost of 
        lending.
            ``(5) The extent to which the entity implements a plan to 
        become financially sustainable.
    ``(d) Additional Requirement.--Assistance provided under this 
section may only be used to support micro- and small enterprise 
programs and may not be used to support programs not directly related 
to the purposes described in subsection (b).
    ``(e) Authorized Uses of Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--Amounts made available to carry out this 
        section may be used for, among other things--
                    ``(A) the subsidy cost, as defined in section 
                502(5) of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990, for 
                activities under this section; and
                    ``(B) the cost of administration expenses in 
                carrying out credit activities under this section.
            ``(2) Default and procurement provisions.--
                    ``(A) Default provision.--The provisions of section 
                620(q), or any comparable provision of law, shall not 
                be construed to prohibit assistance to a country in the 
                event that a private sector recipient of assistance 
                furnished under this section is in default in its 
                payment to the United States for the period specified 
                in such section.
                    ``(B) Procurement provision.--Assistance may be 
                provided under this section without regard to section 
                604(a).
            ``(3) Rule of construction.--Amounts authorized to be 
        appropriated under this subsection are in addition to amounts 
        otherwise available to carry out this section.''.

SEC. 6. MICROFINANCE LOAN FACILITY.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act 
of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.), as amended by section 4 of this Act, 
is further amended by adding at the end the following new section:

``SEC. 132. UNITED STATES MICROFINANCE LOAN FACILITY.

    ``(a) Establishment.--The Administrator is authorized to establish 
a United States Microfinance Loan Facility (in this section referred to 
as the `Facility') to pool and manage the risk from natural disasters, 
war or civil conflict, national financial crisis, or short-term 
financial movements that threaten the long-term development of United 
States-supported microfinance institutions.
    ``(b) Disbursements.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Administrator shall make 
        disbursements from the Facility to United States-supported 
        microfinance institutions to prevent the bankruptcy of such 
        institutions caused by--
                    ``(A) natural disasters;
                    ``(B) national wars or civil conflict; or
                    ``(C) national financial crisis or other short-term 
                financial movements that threaten the long-term 
                development of United States-supported microfinance 
                institutions.
            ``(2) Form of assistance.--Assistance under this section 
        shall be in the form of loans or loan guarantees for 
        microfinance institutions that demonstrate the capacity to 
        resume self-sustained operations within a reasonable time 
        period.
            ``(3) Congressional notification procedures.--During the 
        fiscal year 2001, funds may not be made available from the 
        Facility until 15 days after notification of the proposed 
        availability of the funds has been provided to the 
        congressional committees specified in section 634A in 
        accordance with the procedures applicable to reprogramming 
        notifications under that section.
    ``(c) General Provisions.--
            ``(1) Policy provisions.--In providing the credit 
        assistance authorized by this section, the Administrator should 
        apply, as appropriate, the policy provisions in this part that 
        are applicable to development assistance activities.
            ``(2) Default and procurement provisions.--
                    ``(A) Default provision.--The provisions of section 
                620(q), or any comparable provision of law, shall not 
                be construed to prohibit assistance to a country in the 
                event that a private sector recipient of assistance 
                furnished under this section is in default in its 
                payment to the United States for the period specified 
                in such section.
                    ``(B) Procurement provision.--Assistance may be 
                provided under this section without regard to section 
                604(a).
            ``(3) Terms and conditions of credit assistance.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Credit assistance provided under 
                this section shall be offered on such terms and 
                conditions, including fees charged, as the 
                Administrator may determine.
                    ``(B) Limitation on principal amount of 
                financing.--The principal amount of loans made or 
                guaranteed under this section in any fiscal year, with 
                respect to any single event, may not exceed 
                $30,000,000.
                    ``(C) Exception.--No payment may be made under any 
                guarantee issued under this section for any loss 
                arising out of fraud or misrepresentation for which the 
                party seeking payment is responsible.
            ``(4) Full faith and credit.--All guarantees issued under 
        this section shall constitute obligations, in accordance with 
        the terms of such guarantees, of the United States of America, 
        and the full faith and credit of the United States of America 
        is hereby pledged for the full payment and performance of such 
        obligations to the extent of the guarantee.
    ``(d) Funding.--
            ``(1) Allocation of funds.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Of the amounts made available to 
                carry out this part for the fiscal year 2001, up to 
                $5,000,000 may be made available for--
                            ``(i) the subsidy cost, as defined in 
                        section 502(5) of the Federal Credit Reform Act 
                        of 1990, to carry out this section; and
                            ``(ii) subject to subparagraph (B), the 
                        cost of administrative expenses to carry out 
                        this section.
                    ``(B) Limitation on administrative expenses.--Of 
                the amount made available under subparagraph (A) to 
                carry out this section for fiscal year 2001, not more 
                than $500,000 may be made available for administrative 
                expenses under subparagraph (A)(ii).
            ``(2) Relation to other funding.--Amounts made available 
        under paragraph (1) are in addition to amounts available under 
any other provision of law to carry out this section.
    ``(e) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Administrator.--The term `Administrator' means the 
        Administrator of the agency primarily responsible for 
        administering this part.
            ``(2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        `appropriate congressional committees' means the Committee on 
        Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on 
        International Relations of the House of Representatives.
            ``(3) United states-supported microfinance institution.--
        The term `United States-supported microfinance institution' 
        means a financial intermediary that has received funds made 
        available under this Act for fiscal year 1980 or any subsequent 
        fiscal year.''.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Administrator of the United States Agency for 
International Development shall submit to the Committee on Foreign 
Relations of the Senate and the Committee on International Relations of 
the House of Representatives a report on the policies, rules, and 
regulations of the United States Microfinance Loan Facility established 
under section 133 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as added by 
subsection (a).

SEC. 7. REPORT RELATING TO FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OF MICROENTERPRISE 
              INSTITUTIONS.

    (a) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a report on the most cost-effective methods 
and measurements for increasing the access of poor people overseas to 
credit, other financial services, and related training.
    (b) Contents.--The report described in subsection (a)--
            (1) should include how the President, in consultation with 
        the Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
        Development, the Secretary of State, and the Secretary of the 
        Treasury, will jointly develop a comprehensive strategy for 
        advancing the global microenterprise sector in a way that 
        maintains market principles while ensuring that the very poor 
        overseas, particularly women, obtain access to financial 
        services overseas; and
            (2) shall provide guidelines and recommendations for--
                    (A) instruments to assist microenterprise networks 
                to develop multi-country and regional microlending 
                programs;
                    (B) technical assistance to foreign governments, 
                foreign central banks, and regulatory entities to 
                improve the policy environment for microfinance 
                institutions, and to strengthen the capacity of 
                supervisory bodies to supervise microfinance 
                institutions;
                    (C) the potential for Federal chartering of United 
                States-based international microfinance network 
                institutions, including proposed legislation;
                    (D) instruments to increase investor confidence in 
                microfinance institutions which would strengthen the 
                long-term financial position of the microfinance 
                institutions and attract capital from private sector 
                entities and individuals, such as a rating system for 
                microfinance institutions and local credit bureaus;
                    (E) an agenda for integrating microfinance into 
                United States foreign policy initiatives seeking to 
                develop and strengthen the global finance sector; and
                    (F) innovative instruments to attract funds from 
                the capital markets, such as instruments for leveraging 
                funds from the local commercial banking sector, and the 
                securitization of microloan portfolios.
    (c) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this section, 
the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee 
on International Relations of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate.

SEC. 8. UNITED STATES AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AS GLOBAL 
              LEADER AND COORDINATOR OF BILATERAL AND MULTILATERAL 
              MICROENTERPRISE ASSISTANCE ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Findings and Policy.--Congress finds and declares that--
            (1) the United States can provide leadership to other 
        bilateral and multilateral development agencies as such 
        agencies expand their support to the microenterprise sector; 
        and
            (2) the United States should seek to improve coordination 
        among G-7 countries in the support of the microenterprise 
        sector in order to leverage the investment of the United States 
        with that of other donor nations.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) the Administrator of the United States Agency for 
        International Development and the Secretary of State should 
        seek to support and strengthen the effectiveness of 
        microfinance activities in United Nations agencies, such as the 
        International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the 
        United Nations Development Program (UNDP), which have provided 
        key leadership in developing the microenterprise sector; and
            (2) the Secretary of the Treasury should instruct each 
        United States Executive Director of the multilateral 
        development banks (MDBs) to advocate the development of a 
        coherent and coordinated strategy to support the 
        microenterprise sector and an increase of multilateral resource 
        flows for the purposes of building microenterprise retail and 
        wholesale intermediaries.

SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Microenterprise institution.--The term 
        ``microenterprise institution'' means an institution that 
        provides microfinance services, and other training or business 
        services, directly to microentrepreneurs.
            (2) Microfinance institution.--The term ``microfinance 
        institution'' means an institution that makes loans as well as 
        provides savings and insurance services.
            (3) Practitioner institution.--The term ``practitioner 
        institution'' means a microfinance institution that is 
        administered by a nongovernmental organization or by a private 
        and voluntary organization and that provides direct services 
        for microentrepreneurs.
                                                       Calendar No. 670

106th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                S. 2844

                          [Report No. 106-335]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the provision 
        of assistance to increase the availability of credit to 
    microenterprises lacking full access to credit, to establish a 
          Microfinance Loan Facility, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                             July 11, 2000

                 Read twice and placed on the calendar