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Lusaka, Zambia, November 17, 2017 –
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, together with the Bank of Zambia, today announced the launch of the collateral registry in Zambia, an innovative financial tool that will allow smaller businesses in the country to use moveable assets such as machinery or equipment to access loans, helping them grow.
The collateral registry is part of Zambia’s effort to modernize the country’s financial infrastructure. It follows the adoption of a modern secured transactions law that protects the rights of financial institutions, encouraging them to offer financing to the small-scale business sector.
Alejandro Alvarez de la Campa, Practice Manager for the World Bank Group’s Finance and Markets Global Practice, said: “By implementing these financial sector reforms and launching the collateral registry, Zambia has demonstrated its commitment to increasing access to finance for the small businesses and entrepreneurs that need it the most”.
In the World Bank Group’s 2018 Doing Business report, Zambia was ranked second globally in the Getting Credit category – just after New Zealand. The secured transactions law and collateral registry make it easier for small businesses that do not have access to traditional collateral, like land or real estate, to take out a loan and grow their business using moveable collateral, such as equipment, machinery, inventory, and other types of moveable property to access finance.
Dr. Tukiya Kansaka-Mabula, Deputy Governor, Administration, Bank of Zambia, said: “This occasion symbolizes a significant step in enhancing the legal and institutional infrastructure that fosters financial inclusion and access to finance. We need not relent in our efforts in order to sustain these gains and improve the statistics on financial inclusion in general and access to credit by SMEs particularly on lending secured by movable property.”
Zambia is the sixth country in Sub-Saharan Africa to establish a modern, online registry with the support of the World Bank Group, following Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone. Zambia’s registry is hosted by the Patents and Companies Registration Agency (PACRA) and can be accessed at
www.pacra.org.zm/mprs
DFID Zambia. UK Aid supported the establishment of the legal framework and registry.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. Working with more than 2,000 businesses worldwide, we use our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in the toughest areas of the world. In FY17, we delivered a record $19.3 billion in long-term financing for developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to help end poverty and boost shared prosperity. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
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