Tala has launched a grant programme that seeks to help Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Kenya access finance technology with ease.
The Ksh.2 million programme targets customers who have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.
According to Tala, the programme will run throughout November.
Only Tala’s customers will be eligible for the programme and will have to provide proof about how they have been affected by the pandemic.
SMEs in Kenya cover 40 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) thus play a significant role in the country’s economy.
According to Tala Managing Director Ivan Mbowa, the recent move by Tala will make a big difference to their SME customers in quick loan approval and free financial education.
Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows that Kenya’s SME account for 83 percent of new jobs every year.
Tala is also looking forward to increasing the number of loan payments and increasing their loan limit.
This coming just a week after President Uhuru Kenyatta gave a directive on Credit Reference Bureaus (CRBs) in the country to work on a one-year moratorium with financial institutions not to include SMEs and individuals with loan default of below Ksh.5 million into their records.
With the President’s directive on CRBs, Mbowa fears that it will limit mobile lenders’ willingness to avail credit to customers due to high risks involved.
