Insufficient access to finance and credit represents one of the most critical constraints to economic development, particularly for rural and self-employed households and for micro, small and medium enterprises. Access to credit is crucial for economic growth and is the engine for private sector development. However, two key challenges stand out: First, insufficient or unsuitable collateral, which is among the top reasons for difficulty in accessing finance. Second, lenders often lack the necessary information to assess the creditworthiness of potential customers. In the absence of automated screening methods, the relative costs of personal screening and due diligence by an individual bank are very high, while the loan amounts tend to be modest and only short-term.

Overall, the programme aims at fostering (i) responsible access to finance and (ii) facilitating financial inclusion for those individuals and firms previously excluded and/or underserved by the market. Ultimately, as it is commonly argued and backed up by a sizable corpus of academic literature, this will, among other things, lead to deeper and more inclusive credit markets by lowering the interest rate of loans and increasing their maturity. This will result in higher productivity, increased private sector growth and thus facilitate the creation of more and ideally better jobs.

Well-functioning and comprehensive credit reporting systems are established.

New or reformed secured transactions systems are put in place.

Collateral registries are set up and/or improved.

Strong legal and regulatory frameworks to facilitate secured or ‘collateralised’ transactions are established.

Expected results:  

Number of entities receiving advisory services.

Number of new laws/regulations/amendments/codes/public policies drafted, or contributed to the drafting.

Number of procedures/firm-level policies/practices/standards recommended for improvement or elimination.

Number of workshops, training events, seminars, conferences, etc.

Number of participants in workshops, training events, seminars, conferences, etc.

Number of women participants in workshops, training events, seminars, conferences.

Number of participants providing feedback on satisfaction.

Phase 3 01.01.2015 - 31.03.2021   (Completed)