National Microfinance Support Programme

National Microfinance Support Programme

The programme directly supports financial institutions under the guarantee of the central government. It has the aim of improving and expanding access to microfinance services for poor people in both rural and urban areas. It will help develop a more formal, extensive and effective microfinance sector on a national scale and it will support the development of sustainable microfinance institutions.

IFAD funding, which is restricted to rural and semi-rural areas, focuses on lending to third parties, usually self-help groups. The programme has leveraged an IFAD loan of US$22 million to access a grant fund of US$23.5 million and a total loan and equity fund of US$89 million. This programme also takes an innovative approach towards commercializing the microfinance sector.

Source: IFAD