I
103D CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4511
To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the Administrator
of the United States Agency for International Development to provide
assistance 
for 
programs 
of 
credit 
and 
other 
assistance 
for
microenterprises in developing countries.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 26, 1994
Mr. GEJDENSON (for himself, Ms. MCKINNEY, Ms. CANTWELL, Mrs. KEN-
NELLY, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. GILMAN, and Mr. BEREUTER) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
A BILL
To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize
the Administrator of the United States Agency for Inter-
national Development to provide assistance for programs
of credit and other assistance for microenterprises in
developing countries.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Microenterprise Devel-
opment Act of 1994’’.
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOP-
MENT ASSISTANCE.
Chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act
of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) is amended by adding
at the end the following new section:
‘‘SEC. 129. MICROENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT AS-
SISTANCE.—(a) The Congress finds the following:
‘‘(1) A strong microenterprise sector is a fun-
damental condition of economic pluralism.
‘‘(2) Microenterprise development programs
offer an important mechanism to alleviate poverty,
develop private enterprise, and create employment.
‘‘(3) The very poor, particularly poor women, in
the developing world often do not advance economi-
cally because they cannot obtain investment capital
to secure their asset base or expand their otherwise
viable microenterprise activities.
‘‘(4) 
The 
development 
of 
sustainable
microenterprise institutions which provide credit,
training, and mobilize domestic savings are therefore
critical components to a broad-based economic
growth strategy.
‘‘(5) Microenterprise credit also offers a tool to
leverage foreign assistance resources because unlike
grants credit can be continually recycled generating
new benefits to program participants.
‘‘(6) Interest income on a credit portfolio can
be used to finance recurring costs assuring the long-
term continuity of development assistance.
‘‘(7) Because microenterpise development credit
programs foster self-reliance, such programs reduce
the dependency of program participants and indige-
nous institutions on foreign assistance.
‘‘(b) The purposes of this section are—
‘‘(1) to provide for the continuation and expan-
sion of the commitment of the United States Agency
for International Development to microenterprise de-
velopment programs;
‘‘(2) to make microenterprise development a
part of the mainstream of the overall economic
growth strategy of the United States Agency for
International Development; and
‘‘(3) to improve the access of microenterprise
credit to the very poor, particularly poor women, in
developing countries.
‘‘(c)(1) In carrying out this part, the Administrator
of the United States Agency for International Develop-
ment is authorized to provide assistance for programs of
credit and other assistance for microenterprises in devel-
oping countries.
‘‘(2) Assistance authorized under paragraph (1) shall
be provided through—
‘‘(A) United States and indigenous private and
voluntary organizations;
‘‘(B) United States and indigenous credit
unions and cooperative organizations; and
‘‘(C) other indigenous governmental and non-
governmental organizations;
that have a capacity to develop and implement
microenterprise programs.
‘‘(3) A significant portion of assistance authorized
under paragraph (1) shall be used for poverty lending pro-
grams which—
‘‘(A) meet the needs of the very poor members
of society, particularly poor women; and
‘‘(B) provide loans of $300 or less in 1994
United States dollars to such poor members of soci-
ety.
‘‘(4) The Administrator of the United States Agency
for International Development shall strengthen appro-
priate mechanisms, including mechanisms for central
microenterprise programs, for the purpose of—
‘‘(A) providing technical support for field mis-
sions of the United States Agency for International
Development;