Khula Enterprise Finance reported a 40 per cent increase in the value of disbursements to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) during the one year period until March 2004, which totalled 280 m Rand. The number of beneficiaries increased by 21 per cent to 110,000 during the same period.
This performance is set against the backdrop of a four-year period which saw a flattening in the level of disbursements driven primarily by a stagnation of its Credit Guarantee product.
A more active business development approach and an improved SME lending environment have contributed to this achievement, with disbursements under the credit guarantee scheme increasing by 30 per cent in value to 130 m Rand for the year,
according to the Khula agency.
The chairperson of the agency's board, Nomonde Mapetla, said the challenge of access to finance by small business was still very pressing and Khula would continue to focus on
raising the level of delivery even higher....
