With the exhibition “Development Money”, the Sparkasse Fürstenfeldbruck and Sparkassenstiftung present pictures of financial cooperations in Ghana, Laos and Vietnam. The photo exhibition was first presented at the end of 2013 and has since then been shown at 12 different savings banks throughout Germany.

On 14 January 2015, Heinrich Haasis, Niclaus Bergmann and Klaus Knörr, Chairman of the Board of Sparkasse Fürstenfeldbruck, together with the savings bank’s Board Members, Frank Opitz and Dr. Peter Harwalik, jointly welcomed the invited guests to the opening ceremony.

Proven know-how of German Sparkassen – at international level too

In his opening speech, Haasis gave an overview of Sparkassenstiftung’s activities: In 2014, Sparkassenstiftung has been active in 31 countries all over the globe. Information on Sparkassenstiftung’s worldwide project activities can be accessed under the following link: www.sparkassenstiftung.de. The business model operated by the German Sparkassen (savings banks) is experiencing a revival – despite or even because of the global financial crises. This trend has an impact on Sparkassenstiftung’s project work: “For more than 20 years now, Sparkassenstiftung has conveyed the success factors of the German Sparkassen  to developing and emerging countries. Not only the developing and emerging countries are interested in our German savings banks model, but the European countries have recently expressed their interest, too”, Haasis explained.

Pictures from Ghana, Laos and Vietnam

Haasis presented Sparkassenstiftung’s project activities in Ghana, Laos and Vietnam. These are the countries, the photographer Philip Ruopp travelled on behalf of Sparkassenstiftung and where he caught these intensive and more than often very emotional impressions of the people living there, of their work and how they deal with money.

Together with the Rheinischer Sparkassen- und Giroverband (Rhineland Savings Banks Association), the Sparkassenstiftung has supported the Cooperative Credit Unions Association since 2010. Project work here focuses on the setup of a training facility for the staff of these about 400 credit unions and their more than 500,000 customers. Haasis further explained: “Lending business is only one component of our project approach, which is supplemented by our efforts to enhance the customers’ knowledge and understanding of financial products with a strong focus on saving.” In Ghana, the average income amounts to about 72 euros per month. Despite these small amounts available, saving is a stringent necessity in Ghana – like in many other countries of the world. “There are no social security systems. But you cannot do without savings for a rainy day.” Haasis emphasized that saving and financial literacy play a highly important role in Ghana for that reason.

With 65 euros respectively 55 euros per month, the average income in Vietnam and Laos is even lower than in Ghana, Haasis added. For some years now, Sparkassenstiftung has supported a total of ten microfinance institutions in these two countries along with Cambodia and Myanmar within the scope of a regional project. The overall objective is to strengthen poor households and micro entrepreneurs in this region by offering savings and loan products.

Some photos of the exhibition display female customers of the Women and Family Development Fund (WFDF) in Laos: “Together with the Lao Women’s Union we have started to set up the WFDF some five years ago. Today, the WFDF has more than 3,200 female customers. There are no banks in the villages of Laos. The way to the next province capital is often far – and the roads are bad.” So it makes sense, if the customers do not have to go to the next WFDF branch, but the other way round. This is how the WFDF operates: At regular intervals, set hours and mostly once per week, WFDF field officers hold centre meetings, often at the village’s Buddhist temple, and the women have the opportunity to pay in their savings rates, loans rates or health insurance rates.

Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe (Savings Banks Finance Group) takes over responsibility at international level

The access to financial services is a prerequisite enabling all strata of the population to take their future into their own hands, emphasized Knörr in his speech. “Savings banks are mainly perceived through their regional activities. The exhibition demonstrates that we, in our capacity as savings banks organisation, need to take over responsibility – jointly and at an international level, too.” As a central institution of the German Savings Banks Finance Group (Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe), the Sparkassenstiftung für internationale Kooperation (Savings Banks Foundation for International Cooperation) has represented this idea for more than two decades. Following the motto: “Good for the world”, the Sparkassenstiftung spreads the idea of regional economic cycles all over the globe. Backed by a wealth of Sparkassen experience, the Sparkassenstiftung promotes the economic and social development in its project countries. The Sparkasse Fürstenfeldbruck is deeply convinced of this concept. Knörr further explained: “It is in the interest of us all to contribute to creating independent and economically successful communities and countries.”

Sparkassenstiftung’s work illustrated in pictures

During his one-month trip, the photographer Philip Ruopp collected sensational impressions on site. On his search for scenes, he did not only come across many moving personal destinies, but also closely experienced the different cultural, religious and political circumstances in Sparkassenstiftung’s partner countries. In an artful and documentary way, Philip Ruopp has transferred his experience and impressions gained into those pictures presented at the exhibition “Development Money”. The 42 pictures displayed at Sparkasse Fürstenfeldbruck give an insight into the life of the recipients of “Development Money” and show how these people deal with their scarce financial resources in their everyday life.

The photo exhibition “Development Money” can be visited at the Sparkasse Fürstenfeldbruck, Hauptstraße 8 until 6 February. As a follow-up to the exhibition, all visitors get a free copy of the exhibition catalogue displaying further pictures taken by the photographer Philip Ruopp.

Further Information and press reactions on the exhibition can be accessed here:

<link file:513 _blank>Kreisbote und Gemeinde Anzeiger, 8. Januar 2015

<link file:514 _blank>Tagblatt, 10./11. Januar 2015

<link file:515 _blank>Fürstenfeldbrucker SZ, 14. Januar 2015

<link file:516 _blank>Amper Kurier, 14. Januar 2015

<link file:517 _blank>Fürstenfeldbrucker SZ, 15. Januar 2015

 <link file:518 _blank>Pressemitteilung Sparkasse Fürstenfeldbruck

 <link file:128 _blank>Sparkassenzeitung Online, 20. Januar 2015

 <link file:127 _blank>Sparkassenzeitung, 23. Januar 2015

<link file:126 _blank>MikrofinanzWiki, 26. Januar 2015

Contact partners:

Carina Lau
Savings Banks Foundation for Interantional Cooperation
Simrockstraße 4
53113 Bonn
Phone: +49 228 9703-6608
E-Mail: carina.lau@sparkassenstiftung.de

Johann Steber
Sparkasse Fürstenfeldbruck
Hauptstraße 8
82256 Fürstenfeldbruck
Phone: +49 8141 407-591
E-Mail: johann.steber@sparkasse-ffb.de