Uganda

Economy:
Brutal dictatorship followed by guerilla war claimed the lives of over 400,000 people between 1971 and 1985. The "Lord's Resistance Army" has waged guerilla war in northern Uganda since 1987, abducting 25,000 children for use as soldiers and sex slaves.

Some 35 percent of the population lives below the poverty line; 96 percent survive on less than $2 per day. Agriculture employs 82 percent of workers. Coffee is the leading export. Since 1986, the government has bolstered the economy with policies aimed at dampening inflation and boosting production and export earnings. Uganda is a case study for slowing the rate of AIDS through education and treatment; currently 38 percent of the 156,000 Ugandans who need antiretroviral drugs receive them.

Climate for microfinance:
• FINCA Uganda recently transformed into a regulated, deposit-taking institution in order to intermediate saving deposits, allowing a vast new area of client services.
• The World Bank estimates Uganda's informal economy to represent 43.1 percent of the country's GNP.

FINCA Uganda serves clients in 34 of the country's 69 districts. Some 60 % of clients are single mothers; 75% care for orphans who lost parents due to HIV/AIDS.

An industry leader, FINCA Uganda finances a significant proportion of its activities by mobilizing client savings. The program is a model for what FINCA, with donor support and prudent expansion, can accomplish throughout sub-Saharan Africa.