A new sub-variant of covid 19 in China is affecting oil demand, thus promoting an economic slowdown and fears of a possible recession.
June 13, 2022
Access to Credit – The Key to Financial Inclusion
— December 8th, 2021
Having access to credit represents access to a form of capital, which is crucial to most startups, especially Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs). Achieving success in financial inclusion means boosting economic prosperity which when merged with trading facilities, can impact economic growth.
The Nkafu Policy Institute, under its Nkafu Open Trade Initiative (NOTI) project, organized a very engaging panel discussion on the theme “Can the AfCFTA Boost Access to Credit for SMEs.” This was held at the Muna Foundation in Yaounde and had as Panelists Ndzah Mokom, the CEO of Stoneshed FX PLC, Dr. Besong Agbor of the World Bank, and Fri Assanga, CEO of the Denis and Lenora Foundation.
The conversation focused on SMEs’ access to credit information, the formal vs informal operations of SMEs, credit rating systems, access by financial institutions to such systems and equity shares as an alternative source of capital for SMEs.
The African financial infrastructure for financing and access to financing needs to be remodeled to reflect the reality of both the entrepreneur and the market. Other sources for financing, such as angel investors, crowd funding and “Tontins” need to be recognized, developed, and formalized to ensure financial inclusion becomes a reality in Africa. The weak balancesheet of most banks makes the development of alternative forms of financing necessary.
Let us know what you think about this in the comments section.
