Entrepreneurs’ loan default reaches 50%, raising concerns
Since the launch of the ‘small projects’ initiative in 2016, loans have been granted to around 1,100 entrepreneurs, totaling approximately 244 million dinars
• Around 200 borrowers haven’t submitted financial statements or made payments, while thirty continue paying without submitting statements.
Khalifa Abdullah Al Ajeel, the Minister of Commerce and Industry, along with members of the Board of Directors of the National Fund for the Development and Sponsorship of Small and Medium Enterprises, reviewed the fund’s financial status and its relationship with digital entrepreneurs. Preliminary figures indicate that the loan default rate is nearing fifty percent, informed sources told Al-Rai newspaper.
The sources indicated that the minister was informed that since the launch of the ‘small projects’ initiative in 2016, loans have been granted to around 1,100 entrepreneurs, totaling approximately 244 million dinars.
The sources explained that about 200 of the borrowers have not submitted their financial statements since receiving the fund’s loans and have stopped making payments, while around 30 entrepreneurs have not submitted their financial statements but continue to pay their installments. Additionally, about 300 entrepreneurs are consistently meeting their payment obligations.
The sources also noted that around 30 entrepreneurs have repaid their debts early for personal reasons, and the total amount collected from loan installments is about sevenmillion dinars.
