Microfinance Focus June 24, 2011: Microfinance industry stakeholders from across the globe recently gathered at the annual meeting of the Social Performance Task Force (SPTF) in the Dutch city of Den Bosch to discuss advancing the global social performance agenda to the benefit of the microfinance clients.

The SPTF was also scheduled to launch the Universal Standards for Social Performance, an initiative defining the guidelines and benchmarks any double or triple bottom line institution should be accountable to.

Social performance as defined by SPTF is the translation of a microfinance organization's mission into practice, in line with social values including serving more poor and excluded people sustainably.

Over 200 participants representing dozens of social performance initiatives gathered to maximize their impact on the microfinance industry, one of the ways was through the Universal Standards for Social Performance.

The SPTF consists of over 1,000 members from all over the world and from every microfinance stakeholder group such as practitioners, donors and investors (multilateral, bilateral, and private), global, national and regional associations, technical assistance providers, rating agencies, academics, researchers, and others.

The Social Performance Task Force holds a multi-day meeting for all members every year, usually in June.  The annual meeting is a place where the task force meets to discuss progress made in the previous year, to debate pressing issues, and set an agenda for SPTF’s work for the following year.  Individual working groups also meet in break-out sessions to discuss in further detail their particular areas of interest and expertise.