To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations he has received on the effectiveness of his Department's microfinance projects.

The Department for International Development (DFID) has received 18 parliamentary questions on microfinance since the beginning of 2011. Ten of these questions specifically related to the effectiveness of microfinance projects funded by DFID in alleviating poverty, increasing women's empowerment and improving financial sustainability in developing countries.

The Under-Secretary of State for International Development, Mr O'Brien, met with representatives of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Microfinance on 2 March 2011 to discuss DFID's microfinance strategy. DFID will participate in the oral evidence session of the APPG on Microfinance's Global Inquiry on Microfinance in early April. DFID will also shortly publish the results of a public consultation on the Microfinance Capacity Building Facility for Africa, which received over 400 responses.