The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the US-based World Bank Group, and Agence Française de Développement (AFD), the international development arms of the French government, recently launched a Middle East and North Africa (MENA) SME Risk Sharing Facility, through which the organizations will guarantee loans for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), 20 percent of which are to be issued to enterprises owned and operated by women. Through its first deal, the facility will guarantee USD 5 million in SME loans extended by BLC Bank of Lebanon, formerly known as Banque Libanaise pour le Commerce. This commitment is expected to stimulate USD 10 million in SME financing, which AFD’s Country Director of Lebanon Lionel Cafferini describes as “part of a long-term push to create a sustainable banking industry and strengthen Lebanon’s private sector.
