DEVELOPMENT NEWS
Supporting SMEs in Viet Nam
A US$40 million OPEC Fund loan will help grow small businesses T he OPEC Fund for International Development is providing a US$40 million loan to Vietnam Maritime Commercial Joint Stock Bank (MSB) for on-lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The loan will support at least 80 local firms, providing critical financing to expand their businesses. Meanwhile, MSB will benefit from a growing portfolio of clients. OPEC Fund Director-General Abdulhamid Alkhalifa said: “SMEs make up the majority of businesses and provide more than half of overall employment in Viet Nam. Systemic banks such as MSB play a key role in enabling local businesses to access global markets, while promoting sustainable economic development and job creation.” MSB operates across 51 cities/provinces in Viet Nam and provides banking and financial services, focusing in particular on SME and retail lending. MSB CEO Nguyen Hoang Linh said: “Our strategy is to promote the development of the SME sector to become our main growth driver in the near future. The agreement affirms the partnership between MSB and the OPEC Fund and the parties’ efforts to promote financial access for SME clients, who have high demand for capital to resume dynamic growth after the COVID-19 pandemic.” According to the Ministry of Finance, Viet Nam has more than 500,000 private firms of which over 95 percent are micro and small enterprises. Access to credit remains a major concern for these companies as their integration in global supply chains and finance was disrupted by the pandemic.
Developing Niger’s solar energy sector
A US$20 million OPEC Fund loan will help generate 40 MW of renewable energy
A ccess to renewable energy will be increased and electrification scaled up in Niger thanks to a US$25 million loan from the OPEC Fund for International Development in support of the Niger Solar Plant Development and Electricity Access Improvement Project (RANAA). The OPEC Fund is joining forces with the African Development Bank, Power Africa, the Green Climate Fund and the Government of Niger for a total financing of US$167 million. OPEC Fund Director-General Abdulhamid Alkhalifa signed the loan agreement in the capital Niamey with Minister of Finance Ahmat Jidoud and said: “Our support will help Niger increase access to affordable and clean energy and improve the overall capacity of the electricity network, making a real difference to people’s lives. The OPEC Fund is committed to addressing the twin challenges of energy access and climate action and helping ensure that no one is left behind.” RANAA will support the development of
the energy sector through the construction of three solar plants in the Maradi, Dosso and Diffa regions with a total generation capacity of 40 MW. The new facilities will benefit more than 750,000 people in a country where presently only around 20 percent of the population have access to electricity and with significant disparities between urban and rural areas. The project also includes the extension of 2,600 km of new transmission lines connecting cities in Niger’s south and in Niamey. The OPEC Fund’s loan will finance the construction and grid integration of the 10 MW Dosso solar plant. With a gross national income of US$529 per capita Niger is among the world’s Least Developed Countries, according to the UN. Since the start of its operations in 1976, the OPEC Fund has extended 30 public sector loans for a total of US$246 million to Niger, supporting agriculture, transport, education, water and health and a number of other initiatives through 33 local and regional grants.
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