The Royal Government of Cambodia has allocated additional fund of US$100 million to the existing financing schemes for the state-run SME Bank and Agricultural and Rural Development Bank (ARDB) to continue supporting credits with concessional interest rates to SMEs and agriculture.
The fund was announced in the Dissemination Ceremony on the Additional Fund Allocation for Small and Medium Enterprise Bank of Cambodia and Agricultural and Rural Development Bank, held virtually on Feb. 14 under the presidency of H.E. Aun Pornmoniroth, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Finance and Chairman of the Committee on Economic and Financial Policy.
Of the additional fund, US$50 million will be provided to the SME Bank for the continuation of the second phase of the co-financing schemes to support the SMEs, which will increase the contribution of the Royal Government of Cambodia to US$120 million.
The other US$50 million will go to the ARDB for special financing programme, which US$10 million will be used in the rice sector, and 50 percent of the remaining US$40 million will be used for direct lending and the other 50 percent for Risk-Sharing Syndicated Facilities with financial institutions to support fruit sub-sectors, animal husbandry, aquaculture, and agricultural product processing.
The revitalisation of Cambodia’s socio-economic activities, especially SMEs, agriculture, agro-industry and other priority sectors, to return to stability and toward the path of potential economic growth in a new normal after the Covid-19 crisis, requires close cooperation with a strong solidarity, active participation and high accountability from all stakeholders, especially the SME Bank, ARDB and private financial institutions, in providing additional co-financing schemes, read the ministry’s press release.
In 2020, the Royal Government of Cambodia implemented the first phase of the Co-financing scheme through the SME Bank in collaboration with participating financial institutions in the amount of US$100 million. In August 2021, additional US$140 million was allocated, which US$70 million from government and other US$70 million from participating financial institutions.
Additionally, the RGC has implemented the special financing programme to support agriculture through the ARDB with a total fund of US$73 million to support rice sector in order to maintain price stability and boost exports and other US$50 million to support SMEs in agriculture including animal husbandry, vegetable, fruit growing, aquaculture, and agricultural product processing.
Source: Agency Kampuchea Press