DUSHANBE, Tajikistan, March 28. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved a $1 million loan to Tajikistan’s Humo microcredit deposit organization, Trend reports.
According to the EBRD, the loan is provided under the Financial Intermediary Framework-Central Asian Women in Business (CA WiB) program.
The CA WiB loan will help Humo maintain a diverse funding base and enhance its support for women-led small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Tajikistan. Humo will also receive technical assistance to improve its capacity to finance businesses led by women and to reduce gender disparities in accessing finance.
The CA WiB program strives to foster women's entrepreneurship across Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. It aims to help women-led MSMEs in these countries by facilitating their access to financing, expertise, and guidance.
The EBRD plans to allocate over $110 million in investment funds through this initiative. By collaborating with partner financial institutions (PFIs), the program aims to reach out to at least 7,000 women-led MSMEs, who often encounter significant gender-related barriers when seeking financial support and expert advice.
Meanwhile, the current loan portfolio of the EBRD in Tajikistan amounted to 482 million euros for 69 active projects as of January 31, 2024.
As of the reporting date, the EBRD's cumulative investments in Tajikistan totaled 919 million euros, spread across 165 projects, with the private sector's share in the portfolio amounting to 13 percent.
Humo offers a wide array of banking services, such as deposits, loans, payments, and money transfers, primarily targeting the lower segment of MSME clients, with a special emphasis on retail and agricultural lending. With 24 branches and 49 customer service outlets, Humo serves approximately 286,000 clients across more than 64 cities and districts throughout Tajikistan.