New gender lens investing tool for Asia-Pacific SMEs receives UN support
July 15th, 2020 – Earlier this year, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the Small Enterprise Assistance Funds (SEAF) partnered to unlock US$ 150 million in capital for gender lens investing in Asia...
Most SMEs point to this factor as critical to their recovery
July 24th, 2020 – Research from SME lender OnDeck Australia found that 57 per cent of SMEs say access to cash flow will help them recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. It found 69 per cent of SMEs with six to 49 employees say cash flow is the main fac...
How global disruption can have local implications
July 16th, 2020 – The global impact that the Covid-19 pandemic has had not only on public health, but on business, cannot be underestimated. It’s prudent to consider the impact such a global disruption of trade has on small and medium businesses. ...
Amid Multiple Crises, World Bank Group Refocuses Programs and Increases Financing to $74 billion in Fiscal Year 2020
WASHINGTON, July 10, 2020 – As people in developing countries around the world faced multiple crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Bank Group worked to respond quickly with technical and policy advice, and scaled up financing targeted to t...
Africa could experience economic growth next year
July 10th, 2020 – Africa’s economic growth could rebound in 2021, provided that governments manage the COVID-19 infection rate well, according to updated forecasts from the African Development Bank, released on Tuesday (July 7th, 2020). In a compr...
Making health systems stronger while tackling the impacts of COVID-19
July 1th, 2020 – When COVID-19 emerged as a global threat, the World Bank Group responded with the largest and fastest crisis response in its history. Emergency operations have now reached more than 100 countries, home to over 70 percent of the worl...
Companies need help to overcome rising data inequality
July 6th, 2020 – As the impact of COVID-19 continues to be felt across the world’s economies, supporting SMEs to maintain operations and employment is rightfully the focus of policymakers and industry-leading businesses. Small and medium-sized ent...
Visa to support 10 million SMEs in Asia Pacific
June 26th, 2020 – Visa has recently announced a commitment to support 10 million small businesses across Asia Pacific, including Vietnam, in an effort to get local communities back to business in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The company has in...
Mobile payments help people during the pandemic
June 22th, 2020 – The practical challenge of quickly getting financial support in the hands of people who lost jobs amid the COVID-19 economic crisis has baffled advanced and developing economies alike. Economic lockdowns, physical distancing measur...
Debt and investment transparency for better outcomes
June 19th, 2020 – Since the COVID-19 outbreak, developing economies have suffered unprecedented capital outflows. To reverse these outflows and make debt and investment more productive, it is critical to embrace strong principles of debt and investm...
