Interview with Dzavid Sejfovic, General Manager of LIDER MicroCredit Foundation

Interview with Dzavid Sejfovic, General Manager of LIDER MicroCredit Foundation

Dzavid Sejfovic (far right) worked with LAPO Microfinance Bank, a Nigerian microfinance institution, to set up a new housing loan program.
Dzavid Sejfovic is the General Manager of Global Communities’ microfiance institution in Bosnia and Herzegovina, LIDER MicroCredit Foundation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. LIDER aims to bridge gaps in access to credit by offering a range of loan products to under-served clients and helps entrepreneurs and homeowners obtain the credit they need to expand their businesses, improve their homes and invest in their future. Sejfovic recently completed a short-term consultancy in Nigeria where he helped a local institution set up a pilot program for housing microfinance loans.
How long have you worked for LIDER, and how did you start with us?
I started in LIDER as Credit Operations Manager back in December of 2010, and in February 2012 I was promoted to the position of General Manager. After spending almost three years working for FINCA in Kosovo as Regional Manager, I decided it is time to move back to the motherland and seek opportunities in one of the most challenging MFI Markets in the world.
Can you tell us a bit about your professional background? How did you become interested in microfinance in particular?
Prior to joining FINCA in 2008, I lived in Pittsburgh where I got both my BSBA and MBA from University of Pittsburgh (KATZ Graduate School of Business). While working on my education, I was also working full time for one of the largest financial institutions in US, now known as Bank of New York Mellon. I was part of a
small team of professionals working in the Family Office and managing financial assets for some of the richest, high-net-worth Individuals and their families in US. While working there I got hooked on the idea of microfinance as some of my former clients were active investors in various MFIs. Now having experience from “both sides”, I can honestly say that there are a lot of similarities between the financial needs of rich and poor people in the world, it is just an unfortunate fact that the poor do not have as many opportunities (besides microfinance) to get access to formal financial systems.
Your trip to Nigeria last summer was designed to help a local institution create a new housing microfinance loan and set up a pilot program. You had a follow up visit this spring to review the program. How were things working out?
Well, given the size and opportunities of this project, things are moving very well. Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country (estimated at 168 million individuals) with a very high rate of urbanization at 4.02%. However, the formal mortgage market is almost non-existent and the government estimates that the housing shortfall in
Nigeria is between 14 million and 17 million units. Finally, with 69% population living under poverty line (World Bank estimate) and earning approximately $116 a month, not too many families can afford a new home. In order to tackle the housing issue in Nigeria, LAPO Microfinance Bank (Nigerian MFI), AFD (French Development Agency) and Lafarge (one of largest producers of cement in the world) formed a partnership where AFD will provide funding to LAPO MfB (approximately EUR 5 million) for providing housing microloans to its current and potential clients, while Lafarge will supply technical assistance for housing projects.
Our initial mission in July 2013 was aimed at helping LAPO create the most appropriate housing loan products tailored for the Nigerian market, help create a business model, and establish a pilot plan for the first 6 months of the project.
The pilot stage lasted from October 2013 until March 2014, and during that period about 120 clients benefited from this project in cities of Sagamu and Abeokuta. Our follow-up mission in March 2014 was aimed at fine tuning the loan products and procedures, providing more detailed business and financial models for the next three years, and providing training for LAPO and Lafarge field staff on all the aspects of housing microfinance.
What were some of the biggest challenges you faced in helping create this new product in Nigeria?
The biggest challenge was helping LAPO get involved in a totally new and unfamiliar microfinance segment as they are the only MFI in Nigeria providing housing loans so far. In addition, working on such a large project with many parties involved requires a lot of communication and diplomacy in order to provide the best solutions that fit everyone’s agenda. 
What were some of the key differences between offering microfinance home loans in Bosnia and Nigeria?
Compared to Nigeria, housing microfinance in Bosnia is already very well developed and all MFIs in the market are offering these loans. Also, in Nigeria housing microfinance is mainly directed towards construction of new housing units, while in Bosnia (due to regulations limiting loan sizes) housing loans are mainly for relatively small home improvement projects.
And any similarities?
The main similarity is that in both markets clients desire to improve the standard and quality of them and their families’ lives, and for that they need microfinance loans as most of them do not have access to other financial institutions (banks, credit unions, insurance companies, leasing, etc.). 
Is there anything you learned throughout this experience that will help you as you continue to work for LIDER?
If anything this experience has strongly reinstated my beliefs on how extremely important microfinance is for the most vulnerable segments of the population in order to just fulfil their basic human needs such as shelter; needs that most of us in developed countries take for granted.
Lastly, while visiting Nigeria, you made sure to bring along some gear from the Bosnia and Herzegovina National Soccer Team. Both Bosnia and Nigeria are in the same group for the World Cup this June. Any predictions on how both teams will do?
Given the fact that another member of our group is Argentina, which is one of the best teams in the world, I believe Bosnia can take second place in the group and pass to the next round of competition. In other words, I hope our Dragons (the nickname of the Bosnian team) will strip Nigerian Super Eagles of their proud feathers!