By Waleed Abel Azeem
The National Bank for Development (NBD) is awaiting approval for an EGP 150 million grant from the Social Fund for Development Fund (SFD), according to Ahmad El-Masry, Director of Corporate Affairs at the bank.
El-Masry said the grant would be directed to finance small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in according with Shari’a, given the importance of these projects as catalysts to the national economy.
The deal to fund SMEs to stimulate the economy and create jobs is the first of its kind between the NBD and the SFD, El-Masry said.
The NBE launched the SMEs funding programme in cooperation with a number of international organisations such as the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the Ford Foundation. The NBD aspires to help comprehensive economic development through funding the informal sector. NBE’s vision is targeted at limiting unemployment, and providing job opportunities within the government for economic development.
