Women entrepreneurs will be entitled to get funding from JICA-backed project styled ‘’Financial Sector Project for the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises (FSPDSME)’’. Bangladesh Bank has brought some necessary amendments in the operating guidelines of the project fund in favour of the women entrepreneurs by providing medium and long-term financial support, according to a Bangladesh Bank statement issued yesterday. The steering committee of the project came up with the decision on January 6 this year to include women entrepreneurs under the re-financing fund. “Women entrepreneurs will get refinance at a favorable interest rate from the second phase of the FSPDSME project,” said the circular with immediate effect. According to the circular, an entrepreneur can get loans up to 75% of project costs under the FSPDSME project in line with the operating guideline. Women entrepreneurs were excluded from the project. But from now on, women entrepreneurs will enjoy 100% refinancing facilities at a bank rate of 5%.Though the FSPDSME project ended on March 31 this year, financing activities will continue from the revolving funds through the banks and financial institutions, who have signed the contract with the project, said the circular.
