Press Release
Two-year Anniversary of U.S. Government Assisted Micro-lending Program
June 28, 2000
Tbilisi – On Friday, June 30, the Foundation for International Community Assistance International (FINCA) will celebrate two years of successful lending activities in Georgia. The FINCA five-year assistance program is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the development assistance agency of the U.S. government. Speaking at the event will be USAID Mission Director Michael Farbman and FINCA/Georgia Director Kirsten Weiss.
FINCA/Georgia’s micro-lending program is part of a $20 million five-year USAID assistance program designed to strengthen micro, small, and medium enterprises in the Caucasus region. FINCA uses the Village Banking approach, based on the group guarantee model. With funding from USAID, FINCA offices in Tbilisi and Rustavi provide micro-credit to groups of micro-entrepreneurs who do not have access to other formal sources of finance.
A priority of U.S. government assistance in Georgia is to ensure that more Georgians are included in and benefit from the transition to a market economy. FINCA/Georgia has served more than 7,000 self-employed micro-entrepreneurs and disbursed more than $2 million to support private micro-enterprise growth in Georgia in the past two years. Three quarters of the beneficiaries have reported increased weekly income as a direct result of the micro-credit program.
Because 70 percent of the world’s poor are women, FINCA programs traditionally focus lending programs on microbusinesses primarily run by women. With no restrictions on men accessing loans, approximately three quarters of FINCA clients in Georgia are women, and approximately one quarter are men.
The two-year anniversary ceremony will take place on Friday, June 30 at 5:00 p.m. in the FINCA/Georgia office on 13-2 Mtskheta Street. For more information please call FINCA at 25 36 88/89.