The post-Approval phase (during the life cycle of the MFI)

The supervision missions:

Off-site Control

The microfinance institutions undertake to transmit to the Microfinance Supervisory Authority:

• Their annual financial statements certified by the external auditor,
• All the requested information, as set by order of the Minister of Finance

The supervisors are authorized to make all the necessary observations, as well as to have, on first request and without needing to move, the documents, items, whatever the medium, and the logs necessary for their research and observations made and to have copies thereof.

On-site control

The MSA supervisors are authorized, in the performance of their duties, to visit the business premises of the microfinance institutions:

• Seize the documents suspected of being falsified or not complying with the norms and rules in force, even from the hands of their holders,
• Convene and hear all the people likely to provide them with information related to their missions,
• Carry out all necessary investigations.

Sanctions for non-compliance with the regulations

In the event of non-compliance by a microfinance institution with the provisions of the regulations in force, the Microfinance Supervisory Authority may impose the following administrative sanctions:

• Address a warning against It,
• Address a blame with an injunction to him to take any corrective measure, within the limited deadlines,
• Pronounce against it an administrative or pecuniary sanction fixed by order of the Minister of Finance,
• Suspend all or part of its activity for a duration going from one month to six months,
• Suspend all or some of its working leaders,
• Place it under provisional administration for a duration not exceeding six months, which may be extended only once,
• Propose the withdrawal of its approval.

The withdrawal of approval may take place on request of the microfinance institution addressed to the Microfinance Supervisory Authority. It may also take place on the initiative of the Minister of Finance on the basis of a report drawn up by the Microfinance Supervisory Authority after hearing the legal representative of the concerned institution and on the opinion of the Professional Association of MFIs, in the following cases:

• It was not made use of the approval within a deadline of one year as from its granting,
• The microfinance institution no longer operates from six consecutive months,
• The microfinance institution does not meet any more the conditions on the basis of which the approval was granted,
• It was proven that the microfinance institution obtained approval by means of misrepresentations or by any other irregular means, the microfinance institution does not justify any more that its assets exceed the liability of which it is held towards the thirds of an amount equal to the minimum capital or the minimum associative endowment.

If the micro finance institution object of the withdrawal is an association, the decision of withdrawal and its reasons are notified to the general secretariat of the Government. The microfinance institution whose approval was withdrawn shall cease its financial activity immediately and limit its operations to those necessary for the liquidation of the microcredit activity and, if necessary, to the other authorized activities and this for a period not exceeding one year which may be extended by authorization of the Microfinance Supervisory Authority.