NAIROBI, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Kenya on Monday launched a World Bank-funded 51.7 million U.S. dollar loan project for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
Rebecca Miano, cabinet secretary in the Ministry of Investments, Trade and Industry, told journalists in Nairobi, the capital, that the supporting access to Finance and Enterprise Recovery project will provide participating financial institutions, including microfinance institutions, digital lenders and savings and credit cooperative organizations, with concessional loans for onward lending to small entrepreneurs.
"The tenor for microloans is expected to not exceed 18 months, and for small loans, it will not exceed three years, providing flexibility for small enterprises to manage their cash flows," Miano said, adding that the beneficiary enterprises will receive loans ranging from 7,000 shillings (50 U.S. dollars) to 250,000 shillings (1,792 dollars).
Alwaleed Alatabani, practice manager of financial competitiveness and innovation for East and Southern Africa at the World Bank, said Kenya has a significant SME funding gap and that credit to the private sector remains low.
He noted that his organization will also provide technical and advisory support to help the participating financial institutions enhance their efficiency in lending to SMEs. ■
