Rotating Savings and Credit Association  From Appropedia Jump
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Associations, or ROSCAs, are a popular form of informal saving
in many countries and can be considered a form of informal
microfinance.  ROSCAs operate on trust; yet even in societies
where levels of trust on financial matters are relatively low,
it is possible for ROSCAs to be popular and effective.[1] This
is likely to be due to:    • the relative effectiveness of
social pressure in some more traditional societies[1]   • the
relative difficulty of saving without an enforced saving
mechanism (when the cultural tendency might be to spend the
money, and social pressure from family or friends is to give or
lend them the money)[1] (Note that cultural tendencies and
practices may vary widely, even within the same region, or
between countries at a similar economic level.)   • less trust
in the formal banking system than in countries with well
established and regulated banking and stable economies[1]