The African Development Bank (AfDB) has given a $50 million loan to the First City Monument Bank (FCMB) to increase lending to female-owned businesses and other local small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs).
According to a statement from the FCMB Friday, the credit facility will narrow the lending gap to underserved segments and complement FCMB’s lending efforts and operations in the Nigerian market.
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The AfDB will disburse the funds to FCMB before the end of this year.
The statement quoted the managing director of the FCMB, Mrs Yemisi Edun as saying, “The $50m credit line will increase access to finance for women empowered businesses and enterprises involved in agribusiness, manufacturing, renewable energy and health care, enabling them to build back better post-COVID.
“We are delighted that a minimum of 30 per cent of the funds will go specifically to women-empowered businesses, which would in turn contribute to stimulating gender equality and empowerment.”
It added, the AfDB will also provide a technical assistance grant of $200,000 to the FCMB through its Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) towards supporting women entrepreneurs in developing countries.
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