Empowering Rwanda’s SME’s – The engine for growth

Message from Joshua Oigara – Chief Executive, Kenya Commercial Bank

Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) CEO Joshua Oigara identified the state-backed credit guarantee scheme as a great resource for medium and small enterprises looking to stay afloat or thrive in 2021.

Offering an outlook for the new year as part of conversations with the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA), Oigara described the newly launched scheme as ‘the most exciting part of innovation during the pandemic by financial institutions’.

He noted that the scheme offered SMEs with no security and inadequate cashflow access to affordable credit, cushioning their businesses from the shocks of Covid-19. Oigara further noted it was the first scheme of its kind in the region.

KCB is among participating banks set to extend credit to SMEs after the government through the Public Finance Management Regulations (2020) set up the Ksh3 billion stabilization facility. To qualify, businesses will be required to meet requirements including compliance with tax obligations and business permits as well as having a good credit standing. “The credit guarantee scheme which is the first across the region is a very exciting initiative set up between the banks, the Central Bank and the National Treasury.

“In many ways small customers or what we call SMEs who have no access to credit because of no security, because their cashflows are not strong enough, get a chance to qualify,” Oigara noted.