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ACAD Finance is a microfinance institution based in Palestine, which provides sustainable and efficient financial services to poor women and families, mainly in rural areas, in order to contribute to poverty reduction and the economic development of Palestine. ACAD Finance was founded in 2014 by the NGO ACAD, which has been working to serve the Palestinian population since 1988. Supported and accompanied by SIDI since the beginning of its activity, SIDI is a shareholder in ACAD Finance.
Palestine is a territory divided and fragmented by the presence and growth of illegal Israeli settlements (according to international law), where the Palestinian State controls only 18% of the surface area, with the remainder administered by Israeli authorities. The simmering conflict flares up regularly (intifadas) but experienced a brutal explosion in Gaza following the deadly Hamas attack in October 2023 and the Israeli government’s response of annihilation of the territory and its population. DAMAN mobilized to cover part of the Gaza portfolio for the three beneficiary MFIs, given the impossibility of recovering the loans made.
ACAD F is the microfinance institution in Palestine with the smallest average loan size in the country, which is a first indication that it is targeting “poor” clients. In addition, and in line with its mission, more than a third of ACAD F’s portfolio is dedicated to financing small-scale agriculture. Finally, more than half of ACAD F’s customers are women. For all these reasons, ACAD F is a micro-financial institution with a strong social impact in one of the most difficult regions to live in.
