Financial Inclusion: AfDB To Channel $150m To SMEs In Africa

The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has said it will channel $150 million funding to Small and Medium Enterprises(SMEs) through Financial institutions (FIs) across Africa to enhance financial inclusion while also addressing barriers to SMEs funding.

This is even as the bank commended Access Bank Plc’s support in providing funding, risk sharing and non-financial services to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises(MSMEs) through the proposed $1 billion SME Immersion Fund for Africa.

The president, AfDB, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, stated this, during the African SME Immersion Roundtable Discussion organised by Access Bank Plc in Lagos.

While delivering a lecture on the theme of the event; ‘Enhancing the Capabilities of MSMEs Across Africa,’ Dr Adesina, who was represented by the director general, Nigeria Country Office, Lamin Barrow said, the bank has prioritised support to MSMEs in its interventions across the high 5 strategic priorities

He added that the bank’s lines of credit interventions are increasingly being more targeted to support the development of regional value chains and clusters, with strong linkages to MSMEs through off-taker and other support to de-risk the ecosystem.

He noted that the bank’s interventions have supported over 20,500 MSMEs and have contributed to the creation of over 440,000 jobs, with women and the youth accounting for 60 per cent.