DUSHANBE, December 1, 2009, Asia-Plus — On Tuesday December 1, 2009, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Swiss Government announced an official launch of a three-year project for strengthening of financial market infrastructure and expansion of access to finance in Tajikistan.
Ms. Anastassiya Marina, IFC Project Manager, noted, “This initiative is part of the Azerbaijan-Central Asia Financial Markets Infrastructure Advisory Services Project.” The project is funded by the Government of Switzerland through the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs and is aimed at strengthening financial markets infrastructure to improve access to finance for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the recipient countries.
The project is scheduled to be completed towards the end of 2012 and totally amounts to US$2.6 million; of this amount, US$2.4 million is provided by the Government of Switzerland and contribution of the recipient countries amounts to US$200,000.
The Tajikistan component of the project will be implemented with active involvement of the Tajik government and financial institutions in order to strengthen credit information sharing and provide trainings on formal risk management for financial institutions employees. It will also help increase public awareness on the benefits of credit information sharing systems and professional risk certification.
According to Ms. Marina, the budget for implementation of the Tajikistan component of the project is US$600,000.
Well-developed and effective credit information sharing systems are critical to the expansion of the credit for both individuals and small businesses. They offer timely, credible, and objective information on borrowers, which could help financial institutions to reduce loan processing time and credit defaults.
“Access to finance is one of the foundations for private sector growth, stimulating economic activities and creating jobs. The program reflects IFC”s strategy of strengthening financial markets infrastructure to better deliver sustainable and efficient financing for SMEs in the region,” – the IFC project manager said.
“Supporting small enterprises through providing them with long-term and sustainable access to finance is one of priorities of the assistance of the Government of Switzerland to Tajikistan,” said, Mr. Rudolf Schoch, Country Director, Swiss Cooperation office in Tajikistan, “The project will assist the country’s financial institutions with making more correct and quick credit decisions, and thereby expanding access to finance for private consumers and SMEs in the country.”
