PFIP awards inaugural Reuben James Summerlin Scholarships

Suva, Fiji - The Pacific Financial Inclusion Programme (PFIP) has today awarded three inaugural Reuben James Summerlin Scholarships.

The scholarship was established in honour of PFIP’s former Programme Manager, Reuben Summerlin, in keeping with his passion for capacity building and education.

The scholarships were open to PFIP’s partner financial institutions in the Pacific to send a nominated staff to attend a three-week course at the prestigious Boulder Institute of Microfinance Training Program (the world’s premier financial inclusion and microfinance program) from July 18th to August 5th 2016 in Turin, Italy.

Each applicant was asked to submit an essay on how they would further develop and scale financial inclusion innovation in their respective financial organizations upon their return.

The scholarships have been awarded to three women in recognition of their demonstrated passion and commitment to financial inclusion in the Pacific. A total of 16 applications were received from three countries.

The awardees are:

Ms. Arishma Prasad, HFC Bank - Fiji
Ms. Joyce Nukumunam, Bank of the South Pacific – Solomon Islands
Ms. Zenash Fox Galmai, Bima (mobile micro-insurance) – Papua New Guinea
The three-week intensive program brings together world renowned experts in microfinance and financial inclusion, with the objective of equipping professionals with practical tools for innovative financial inclusion from across the globe.

Upon completion of their training, recipients will be expected to:

Organise and lead a knowledge sharing event, either within their own institution or for other stakeholders
Author and present a brief policy memo for their institution within 30 days, outlining best practices and include specific recommendations for their institution.
Rueben Summerlin joined the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) in 2012 to manage PFIP.  During this time in office, he expanded PFIP’s activities in both scale and scope, overseeing the fastest expansion in financial services the region has ever seen.

Mr. Summerlin passed away on July 6th 2015 in Fiji after a tragic biking accident.


About PFIP

PFIP is a Pacific-wide programme helping low-income households gain access to quality and affordable financial services and financial education. It is jointly managed by the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and receives funding from the Australian Government, the European Union and the New Zealand Government.

PFIP aims to add one million Pacific Islanders to the formal financial sector by 2019 by spearheading policy and regulatory initiatives, facilitating access to appropriate financial services and delivery channels and by strengthening financial competencies and consumer empowerment.


For more information or media inquiries please contact:

Erica Lee – Communications Associate; Tel: +679 322 7538;   Email: erica.lee@undp.org     Website: http://www.pfip.org/


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