DUSHANBE , May 29, Asia-Plus - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will provide a loan of US$700,000 for financing small businesses in rural areas of the northern province of Sughd.  A loan agreement on this subject will be signed in Khujand, the capital of the Sughd province, on May 30.    

According to information from the EBRD Dushanbe office, three years after launching the $7 million Tajik Micro and Small Enterprise (MSE) Finance Facility with the help of international donors and following the successful financing of over 4,600 Tajik businesses so far, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has granted its credit line to non-bank MFI “MicroInvest” to boost the financing of small businesses in northern Tajikistan.

“MicroInvest” began its micro lending activity in March 2002 and to date has extended loans to over 4,277 micro- and small-entrepreneurs throughout  the Tajik-side of the Ferghana Valley .

“MicroInvest” is one of the leading non-bank MFIs active in north of Tajikistan, serving the smaller and even lower income borrowers, which are not targeted by the commercial banks in Tajikistan.  High standards of service, client-responsive product design and easy access to various communities through rural sub-offices are Microinvest’s major competitive advantages.  As of March 2006, “MicroInvest” had eight representative offices and two branches operating in Sughd region.  

According to information from the National Bank of Tajikistan (NBT), at present 33 MFIs are operating in Tajikistan .