Social Metrics in Microfinance: More Than What Meets The Eye
By: Jon Bishop, CEO and Founder, and Annette Ecila, East Africa Representative – July 2026
We are often asked to showcase Envest’s social impact via metrics. Using social metrics as a proxy for impact has its place – it is a quick and reliable way to distinguish those who walk the talk from those that just talk the talk. However, as is the case in so many aspects of microfinance, there is nuance that can be lost if we rely too heavily on these metrics alone to assess impact. We would like to share a story with you that flies squarely in the face of the top three social metrics that we consider but demonstrates social impact that is undeniable.
Ebenezer Medical Center
David Barasa and his wife Jacinta Kyarikora own and operate Ebenezer Medical Center,
a pediatric clinic in Mbarara, Uganda. They established a clinic in 2015 and expanded into a medical center in 2023 with financing from Envest partner Kigarama Farmers SACCO. The medical center has 35 beds and provides outpatient and inpatient care, including minor surgery.
Ebenezer Medical Center is in a lower income suburb of Mbarara where it is the only viable treatment option for many residents. David was intentional about placing the medical center in an underserved part of town. He worked previously in a clinic with aggressive bill collection techniques and wanted to start a medical center that would serve everyone.
The medical center is reliant on revenue from patients, but no one is denied treatment due to an inability to pay. There is a law that requires clinics to treat patients regardless of their payment capability, but it is easily avoided. David has no interest in taking advantage of such loopholes. He and Jacinta are dedicated to serving the entire community and hope that the medical center outlives them.
Access to Credit
No bank would consider lending to David, and the size and scope of the loan needed was well beyond what would fall within microfinance. One of Jacinta’s former patients introduced David to a loan officer at Kigarama Farmers SACCO, an Envest partner MFI. The medical center would not have qualified for a loan from the SACCO (Savings and Credit Cooperative Organization – a member owned credit cooperative) on standard financial criteria. Yet, after the Kigarama team saw David and Jacinta’s determination and profound impact on the community, they decided to lend outside of usual parameters to have a truly lifesaving impact.
The present loan of $160,000 was used to buy medical equipment, construct a building that houses many of the beds, and build a well for both the medical center and neighborhood residents. The capacity to deliver basic and sometimes lifesaving treatment to pediatric patients has increased dramatically since Wycliffee Mutungi, Director of Kigarama Farmers SACCO, and his team made the unconventional decision to lend to Ebenezer Medical Center.
The flexibility of the Kigarama Farmers SACCO team is key to the medical center’s success. Illnesses such as malaria are seasonal, which results in uneven revenue and makes loan payments difficult during these periods. David says that the Kigarama team is always cooperative when cash flow is challenging. Wycliffee explains that being flexible is the right thing to do, and it is good business. The Kigarama team has complete confidence in David and Jacinta’s integrity and ability to pay, and they are proud to support the medical center. It is evident that Wycliffee Mutungi and his team have a vision of inclusive finance that focuses on a combination of client needs and community impact.
Microfinance Metrics
The following metrics are among those commonly used to assess the impact of microfinance:
1) percentage of women borrowers
2) percentage of rural borrowers
3) average loan size
The first two track what percentage of a portfolio goes to typically underserved segments, and the third one is a proxy for the inclusion of low-income borrowers. The Envest team uses these metrics when evaluating the social impact of MFI partners and considers them to provide a reasonable indication of its partners’ social performance.
Shortcomings of Microfinance Metrics
The loan to David and Jacinta is an example of the shortcomings of the above metrics.
- The loan is in David’s name.
- The medical center is in the second largest city in Uganda.
- The loan size is 200 times Envest’s portfolio average.
The loan to David does not contribute to what are often seen as positive metrics. Nonetheless, the social impact of this loan is clearly extraordinary. The standard metrics serve as useful indicators of impact, but they fail to capture the impact of basic health and even lifesaving treatment for children that has been facilitated by the loan to David and Jacinta.
Envest’s Impact
Before Envest’s first loan in February 2022, Kigarama Farmers SACCO had $1.8 million in total assets and $100,000 in institutional loans. Now, Kigarama Farmers SACCO has $5.3 million in total assets and $1.25 million in institutional loans including $925,000 in loans from Envest. The other loans come from the largest bank in Uganda and a Ugandan development fund. The loan to Ebenezer Medical Center would have been impossible if Kigarama Farmers SACCO had not been able to grow over the last five years thanks to this support. Yet, despite its vision and extraordinary social impact, Kigarama Farmers SACCO has not attracted capital from the international microfinance sector beyond Envest. We are proud to support the vision and mission of Kigarama Farmers SACCO and would like to see other international microfinance lenders support this fine MFI as well.
