The European Investment Fund (EIF), as part of the European Investment Bank Group, has signed with Opportunity Bank a.d. Novi Sad (OBS) loan worth 10 million euros, intended to finance about 4,000 Serbian micro-enterprises from rural areas. Funds that will be available on more favorable terms than the market are provided under the EaSI financial instrument, which the European Union provides to support employment and social innovation. This is the first loan ever signed under this financial instrument for the first time in Serbia, out of a total of 34 countries that have access to this fund.
Opportunity to apply for this credit line Opportunity Bank a.d. Novi Sad will have micro and small enterprises, the self-employed and entrepreneurs from rural areas, as well as agricultural households and small rural farms. The bank will also provide its clients with free education for improving managerial skills through a platform for entrepreneurs.
The Employment and Social Innovation Program (EaSI) supports the EU’s objectives of high quality employment, adequate social protection, the fight against social exclusion and poverty, and the improvement of working conditions. The basis of the EaSI program called Microfinance and Social Entrepreneurship consists of a series of financial instruments funded by the European Union and managed by the European Investment Fund.
The EaSi program is designed to support financial intermediaries so that they can provide micro-loans to entrepreneurs or to finance socially responsible companies. The goal is to make it easier for vulnerable groups to access micro-loans to start their own businesses, as well as micro-enterprises by lending up to 25,000 euros.
EIF Executive Director Alain Godard said: “This loan from the EaSI fund will enable the EIF and OBS to help entrepreneurs with difficult access to finance, which includes small farmers across Serbia. In that way, the development of the microfinance sector in Serbia is promoted, competitiveness is strengthened, jobs are preserved, and the quality of life of small entrepreneurs in local communities is improved.”
Nicholas Schmidt, Commissioner for Employment and Social Rights, said: “I am pleased to have signed this first loan under the new EaSI financial instrument, making Serbia the first country to benefit from this program to help the local economy. In these difficult times, the EU is determined to continue to facilitate access to microfinance, supporting job creation, equal opportunities and financial inclusion – also at the local level – as part of the Western Balkans Recovery Initiative.”
Vladimir Vukotic, President of the Executive Board of OBS, stated: “Support to micro-entrepreneurs and small farmers has always been a priority of OBS, because our mission is to increase employment and develop rural communities through lending to those who have difficult access to credit. At the moment, this strategy is even more important due to the economic crisis that has slowed down business activity and further hampered the operations of micro and small businesses and agricultural farms,” BiF reports.
