Determinants of Microfinance Sustainability: An Empirical Analysis of Microfinance Institutions in Togo

Microfinance has been globally accepted as a tool for poverty reduction by giving poor people access to financial services. However, Microfinance Institutions who are in charge of providing these services, in order to play their role and considerably help in reducing poverty, will have to exist and be able to serve the poor now and on a long term by assuring their longevity thus they must be sustainable. This paper aimed at identifying the factors that have an impact on the sustainability of microfinance institutions in Togo. It used a quantitative approach using panel data from 11 major institutions from 2006 to 2015. The study found that, outreach factors such as the number of active borrowers and the average loan size and also risk indicators such as the risk coverage and the write-off ratio affect the sustainability of microfinance institutions in Togo while other risk indicators such as the portfolio at riskgreater than30 days and the loan loss rate were found insignificant.