The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank (WB), announced an investment of 70 million dollars in Banco Diners Club del Ecuador help higher education students who need financial support in the country.
This is IFC’s first investment in Latin America under the Future Voucher Flows program. The investment is supported by future flows of credit card vouchers issued by financial institutions outside of Ecuador in companies within the bank’s acceptance network in the country.
According to data from the Supervisory Board of Banks of Ecuador, the educational loan market in Ecuador is underdeveloped and represents less than 1% of the total gross portfolio of the banking system.
In addition, _according to the IFC_ there is a lack of alternatives for students to meet their short-term financing needs; for example, paying the full semester’s tuition in advance, as is often required by universities. As a result, students struggle to get into college and stay enrolled.
IFC indicates that the financing is Banco Diners Club del Ecuador helps address this limitation by providing loans that give students and their families the flexibility to defer paying tuition and related education costshelping them overcome crises in their personal finances so students can stay in college.
“Reducing inequality by increasing access to education is a central factor in increasing inclusion in Ecuador and Latin America,” said Manuel Reyes-Retana, IFC’s regional director for South America. “This innovative alliance with Banco Diners Club del Ecuador strengthens IFC’s strategic approach to educationfocused on investing in quality education and training to strengthen human capital and enable people to thrive and be productive in rapidly changing economies,” he added.
For his part, Jaime Crow, vice president of finance of Diners Club del Ecuador, pointed out that “education has always been a priority for us, therefore receiving This important investment is an excellent opportunity to strengthen our goal of supporting students from all over the country.“.
Source: Eluniverso
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