to sort out poverty:
a chance from microcredit
International Seminar
9th and 10th of April, 2005 - Cairo
| Social Loan Tracking System |
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The Social Loan Tracking System |
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What is the SLTS?
What is the Social Loan Tracking System?
The Social Loan Tracking System represents a best practises implementation of microfinancial tools reflected in a technological tool developed for the PAP.
The SLTS was developed on behalf of the Italian Cooperation by IT Synergy and has been an open source project all the way back from the design stage.
During the month of July, PAP had the pleasure to announce the formal launch of SLTS on internet. PAP believes and realizes the importance of ICT as a source to change the fate of the poor, a belief driving us to use technological aides and tools to boost organizational performance. The result: the Social Loan Tracking System Ver. 1.0 (SLTS). As was announced since the beginning of the project, SLTS and all its components will be and are released now on internet as an open source project and this is the first big step on this long road. The SLTS is currently availed through the development and technology consultant, IT Synergy, and may be reached here.
The enhancement and empowering of the micro loan services provided by the Poverty Alleviation and Employment Generation on Minia and Giza governorates – PAP were considered as a basis to provide on a short term a Social Loan Tracking System - SLTS, achieving and giving a direct social and financial profit for the on the improvement of the quality of life for our target group on Egypt.
PAP developed SLTS, a powerful tool to execute, perform, monitor, follow up and evaluate the achievement of its social and financial objectives using Open Source technologies and with a GPL license.
The
Social Loan Tracking System Ver 1.0 – SLTS is tool designed
and developed to support the Poverty Alleviation Program and
Employment Generation on Giza and Minia governorates – PAP on its
daily micro finance activities, reaching all levels inside of its
actual hierarchy (Community Development Associations – CDAs,
Regional Offices and Headquarters) and appointing to reach all micro
finance institutions all over the world. SLTS appoints to manage and
cover widely social and financial PAP micro loans activities with a
clear commitment to improve the quality of actual services and at the
same time identify and provide new through the development of
additional modules, components and features based on expectations and
needs of our target group.
The release and scattering of the SLTS will be led by the Poverty Alleviation and Employment Generation on Giza and Minia governorates on Egypt; the generation of an open source community around the software is sponsored and effected by IT Synergy.
This section provides a detailed explanation about SLTS, the document is written on a friendly and easy terminology to facilitate a fast understanding by the reader. The summary outlines the usage of SLTS supporting users from PAP in any activity related to repayments management, loan tracking, social research, feasibility study on three levels: CDA, Regional offices and Headquarters.
SLTS is composed by two main modules: the local solution for the CDAs and the web solution, (which will be used mainly by Regional Offices and Headquarters).
The local solution is and will be running at CDAs and implies the usage and understanding of SLTS by field officers, cashiers and chairmen.
Local Solution - deployed on the Community Development Associations (CDAs) includes all features needed to manage the micro loan activity at the CDA counting among its features: receipts processing, social research application, feasibility studies, repayments handling, reporting and data transfer from and to CDAs to Headquarters. The Local solution will work off line with a complete suit of tools which facilitates the normal execution of micro loan activities on the branches and every time is needed to update the database needed a data transfer shall be performed using any type of internet connection (ISDL, ADSL, leased line or even dial up) or even using floppy disks.
Web solution.- the solution resides at the web server and will allow the access of authorized log on to users from all over the world with an authorized login and password. This solution shall be used by all users (CDAs, Regional Offices and Headquarters) depending on the internet availability. Last version of migrated databases from all CDAs will be always on line on it at PAP Portal (www.pap.org.eg ).
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SLTS has been developed under the Open Source philosophy and will be released to all Microfinance community under a GPL license
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SLTS has two components: the local and the web application;
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The local application is an stand alone solution and can work off line and upgrade its local database when is needed, (at least a dial up connection or a floppy or any portable disk device to upload and download the last database is needed);
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The web application can be reached using with any web browser, it also includes all features of the local solution and can be used from any PC with an authorized login and password;
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In any moment is possible to download to the local PC the last version of the CDA database (back up restore process) all information can be recover during 24 hours a day with hundred percent accuracy.
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The web solution will use and manage the same users than the local version (it means that a user defined and created on the web system can log in on the local solution at the CDA;
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The web solution is based on open source technologies using Horde application framework;
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SLTS is released under a GPL license (local and web solutions) to all micro finance community;
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Different profiles have been already defined with specific rights based on needs of access at CDA, Regional and Headquarters;
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The local version is one hundred percent Arabic and English enabled, only numbers are entered on Arabic;
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The connection to upload and download information to headquarters main server, this transfer will be performed through an encrypted connection. The web server will have a digital certificate too;
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Headquarters will manage and control online SLTS policy, which will be reflected automatically on the web side and next time the local solution upgrades its database;
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On line manual will give embedded on the solution will provide the basic support needed, all documentation will be released and will be ready to be downloaded too;
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Email facilities are embedded on SLTS
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Through the local interface only the CDA will enter and transfer loan data, the basic CDA approval levels for the loans are performed on the local interface.
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SLTS manages social loans and financial loans.
IT Synergy is, at its core, a technology consultancy with roots in a United Nations initiative. In the mid-1990's, the UNDP was involved in providing technological solutions for state modernization in several Latin American companies. After the project completion, this initiative resulted in the formation of IT Synergy, a company dedicated to technology research and technology-to-market matching. IT Synergy S.A. was incorporated in Peru in 1999, then in the United States in 2001 and, more recently, as an Egyptian company in 2004.
During the last years we have worked in Egypt on several projects with the International Organization for Migration, with the United Nations Development Programme and with the Italian Cooperation. IT Synergy has provided strategic consultancy and project formulation and implementation for several Egyptian ministries as well as conducted numerous Free and Open Source Software - FOSS - implementations at the public and private sector level.
IT Synergy has been involved with the project from its initial phase as a consultant and as a technology expert.
For more information about IT Synergy, the SLTS, or Open Source please visit the following external links:
IT Synergy
The SLTS
The SLTS central code and knowledge repository
Open Source
The primary website of open source software
The primary news site for open source