Project Name：Credit Program for Safeguarding the Productive Sectors and Women MSMEs (Belize)

Project status：Projects in Operation

Cooperating Country：Belize

Project Description：

The project is to support the sustainability of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as employment providers in Belize amid the COVID-19 crisis and to promote the post-COVID economic recovery of MSMEs through access to production-oriented finance, with a specific focus on improving the access of women's businesses to finance. There are three components in the project: (i) to support the short-term financial sustainability of MSMEs; (ii) to promote the economic recovery of MSME through access to production-oriented finance; and (iii) to support the digitalization of the Development Finance Corporation (DFC) with the objective of improving the efficiency of its lending operation, and enhancing the provision of financial services to MSMEs, including women’s businesses.

Project Objectives：

The project helps the DFC (a state-owned national development bank in Belize) expand its lending to MSMEs, and in particular women’s businesses, to facilitate post-COVID economic recovery and promote women’s financial inclusion.

Executing Agency：

Development Finance Corporation (DFC)

Implementation Arrangement：

The TaiwanICDF co-finances the project with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for DFC to either directly or channel through other financial institutions on-lend to MSMEs in Belize. DFC will implement the project in accordance with the credit regulations set out by the IDB and its internal loan operation manual. IDB also assists DFC in improving its ability to implement the project, including impact assessment and financial management procedures required by the IDB.

Project Contact：POLUN, KE

Phone：28886080

E-mail：polun.ke@icdf.org.tw

Signing Date：2023-04-17