After the International Monetary Fund (IMF) urged Malawi to develop Small and Medium Enterprises, a lot of developments were implemented in order to boost the businesses. Biznews compiles of the notable strides made
The 2.25bn FDH Fund
FDH Bank partnered with African Guarantee Fund (AGF) to boost small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in a deal worth about $3 million (about K2.25 billion).
AGF is a pan-African guarantee provider established by a number of African governments and operates in 38 countries with more than 100 partner financial institutions.
Speaking at the signing ceremony in Lilongwe, FDH Bank managing director Eric Ouattara said the partnership will unlock financing and accelerate growth of SMEs.
Govt announces SMEs bank
Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe, announced that government mobilised resources for establishment of an SMEs bank. He was speaking at the launch of a youth development project called Financial Access for Rural Markets, Smallholders and Enterprises (Farmse). He said that one of the bank’s objectives is to promote and enhance the development of SMEs in the country.
The Appsa Sub-Project
Agricultural Productivity Program for Southern Africa (Appsa), organized a sub-project aims at enhancing competitiveness of the SMEs in the region by assisting the SMEs implement Quality Management System (QMS) and obtain national and international quality certification. This was done for SMEs that could not compete favourably on the global market due to poor standards of the products.
NB SME license
At the 2018 Economics Association of Malawi (Ecama) Conference RBM Governor, Dalitso Kabambe, disclosed that National Bank got a license for an SMEs bank. NBM Head of Corporate Affairs and Strategy, Wilkins Mijiga, said Tuesday SME development had been in the works for a long time, adding that that is the reason NBM bought Indebank in 2016; to turn it into a development bank for SMEs.
SMEs are therefore expected to boost the economy by 2020, as various strategies have been implemented by government and the private sector, to develop the businesses.