Know BRAC. Represent BRAC. Develop BRAC.
Across ten locations — Gasabo, Muhanga, Huye, Rusizi, Karongi, Rubavu, Musanze, Kayonza, Ngoma and Gatsibo — group presidents came together for a series of leadership and empowerment workshops built on a simple idea: when clients understand the institution they belong to, take ownership of their groups, and understand their own responsibilities, everyone benefits — including the frontline staff who serve them.
The sessions were framed around three questions: what does it mean to know BRAC, to represent BRAC, and to develop BRAC? Presidents discussed what they understood about the institution, worked through common misconceptions in their communities, and reflected on what it means to represent BRAC honestly — communicating both its value and its clients' real needs and experiences.
A direct conversation
A significant part of each session — up to two and a half hours — was set aside for group presidents to sit down directly with BRAC staff, including Area Managers, the Knowledge and Communications team, and the Social Performance and Product Development Manager. They talked openly about service quality, products, staff-client relationships, and what they want BRMCP to become.
Some of those conversations were candid, surfacing real feedback on where service could improve — exactly the kind of input BRMCP needs to keep listening, learning and getting better for the people it serves.
They also affirmed what's working. One group president put it simply:
"It was my first time to work with a microfinance which trains clients for five straight months without asking for any payment, and at the end of the training it rewards you... I am going to mobilise all women in my community to join BRAC and attend all the trainings."
— _ Christine, Mukamira
That kind of ownership is exactly what the initiative set out to build.
Commitments on both sides
The group presidents didn't leave with expectations for BRMCP alone — they made commitments of their own: to help their members understand their responsibilities, build stronger groups, repay loans as agreed, save regularly, and take deliberate steps toward improving their own livelihoods.
This is what makes the initiative valuable for frontline teams. A well-informed group president can explain products accurately, reinforce responsible borrowing and repayment, encourage consistent saving, and help resolve misunderstandings before they grow into bigger problems. The training doesn't replace frontline mobilisation — it strengthens it.
CEO Upoma Antara joined one of the sessions, where she encouraged participants to keep raising what could be improved, while reminding them of their own role in growing their groups and supporting their members' progress. It's a reminder that a healthy client relationship runs both ways: BRMCP listens and improves; clients participate and take ownership.
From clients to ambassadors
By the end of the workshops, hundreds of group presidents had taken on a new role — not just as leaders of their own groups, but as potential ambassadors for BRAC in their communities: helping BRMCP understand communities better and vice versa, communicating its products and services accurately, and connecting frontline teams with the people they serve.
The next engagement with these client leaders is set for October, during BRMCP's Customer Service and Financial Inclusion Week across all 34 branches.
From clients, to leaders.
From leaders, to ambassadors.
And from ambassadors, to stronger communities.
BRAC Rwanda Microfinance Company PLC is licensed by the National Bank of Rwanda and serves clients across 34 branches nationwide.