Economy Ministry to learn from Germany’s experience in developing SMEs

Germany has a positive experience as regards the interaction of the small enterprises and large companies and the instruction of representatives of the SMEs, while the Ministry of Economy of Moldova is interested in launching new instruments that would contribute to the development of this sector, Deputy Minister of Economy Octavian Calmic said in the second Moldovan-German Forum on the Financing of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, Info-Prim Neo reports. The official stressed that though the SMEs in Moldova represent 98% of the total number of companies, provide 59% of the workplaces and ensure 39% of the turnover, their access to finances is limited. They benefit only from one third of the total finances in economy. “We hope that the experience exchange with Germany will help us improve lending to the SMEs,” said the deputy minister. Uwe Konst, coordinator of the Transform Program that organized the event, said the bank KfW, which manages the financial cooperation in this program, has worked in Moldova since 1999, especially in the areas of social infrastructure and the promotion of SMEs by opening credit lines in the local banks. “KfW is ready to continue contributing to the development of the SME sector in Moldova and to extend its cooperation with Moldovan banking institutions,” said Uwe Konst. Dumitru Ursu, president of the Banks Association of Moldova, said the interest rates on the loans granted by the national banks to the SMEs are higher than in the countries of the region. The cooperation relations established with German financial institutions will enable the Moldovan banks to offer more attractive instruments to the SMEs. The forum was organized by the Transform Program of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the German development bank KfW and the Institute for Development and Social Initiative “Viitorul”. The Transform Program was launched in Germany in 1989 to support the transition to market economies in the East-European countries. KfW is one of the leading banks in Germany that manages the financial cooperation in the program in the name of the German Government.