In this Issue

• Forthcoming events
• Training opportunities
• Training materials
• New in the library

Dear RFLC Readers,

We are pleased to announce a new publication from the Rural Infrastructure and Agro Industries Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO - Course on agribusiness management for producers' associations. This publication is mainly addressed to leaders and managers of small and medium sized producers’ associations with experience in production and marketing of agricultural products and aims at improving their agribusiness management capabilities. However, technicians from governments, NGOs and the private sector, who provide technical assistance to agro-enterprises are also expected to benefit from the publication. The modules of the course include agro food systems and chains, organizational principles for producers' associations, planning for producers' associations, post-harvest and marketing, and business management for small-scale agro-industries.

We would also like to flag two major forthcoming events. The first is the 4th edition of the Master in Microfinance that the University of Bergamo and CIPSI, an association of Italian NGOs operating in developing countries, will be running with the support of the Italian Government. The course, that will also have elements of agricultural and rural finance, will be held in Bergamo, Italy from November 2009 to October 2010. It will be open to 25 students from selected Countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America, who will receive full scholarship from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In addition, a total of 15 students with no scholarship will be accepted. The course will run be in English. For further details about the programme, the organizing institutions and instructions how to apply, please click here.

The second event is the Fourth Annual African Microfinance Conference that will take place in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso from 7 to 10 July this year. After the Conferences held in Johannesburg (2003), Cape Town (2005) and in Kampala (2007), the Organizing Committee aims to continue discussions and topics of the previous conferences in order to depict current experiences and challenges for microfinance in Africa.

The conference will also focus on the issue of access to financial services for small and medium sized African entrepreneurs, operating both in the rural and the urban areas. The Organizing Committee views this issue as the biggest challenge in microfinance for the African continent. For more information, click here.

Best regards,
The RFLC Editorial Team