DUSHANBE, October 14, 2011, Asia-Plus – International Finance Corporation (IFC) is training bankers in Central Asia to develop their ability to provide financial services to small and medium enterprises, helping create new jobs and sustain economic recovery.
A press release issued by IFC says IFC, in collaboration with the governments of Austria and Japan, conducted training sessions in Almaty on October 11-13 to help bankers build sustainable small and medium enterprise banking operations. The training program covered strategy and market segmentation, product design, credit risk management, and information management systems.
More than 35 bankers from across Central Asia participated in the event, which is part of a training program developed by IFC’s Global SME Banking Program to help banks in emerging markets assess the potential risks and benefits of lending to the small-business sector. The training helps financial institutions apply globally-tested risk models to small and medium enterprises.
“SME sector is emerging as an important area for banks to support new economic growth opportunities. Until recently, this sector was off the radar screen of many commercial banking institutions and relied mostly on its own internal resources for survival and growth,” said Tomasz Telma, IFC Director for Europe and Central Asia. “This training for SME bankers in the Central Asian region helps financial institutions learn how to effectively integrate SME clients into their business strategy and how to build on globally-tested models and approaches in serving the SME market segment.”
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector. It helps developing countries achieve sustainable growth by financing investment, providing advisory services to businesses and governments, and mobilizing capital in the international financial markets. In fiscal 2011, amid economic uncertainty across the globe, IFC helped its clients create jobs, strengthen environmental performance, and contribute to their local communities—all while driving our investments to an all-time high of nearly $19 billion.
