Male, November 6, 2007 —
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and the Women Entrepreneurs Council, operating under the aegis of the Maldives National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, have partnered to develop linkages between the tourism industry and local small and medium businesses that focus on the handicraft industry.
A memorandum of understanding and cooperation agreement between IFC Advisory Services in the region – the SouthAsia Enterprise Development Facility – and the Women Entrepreneurs Council to start operations on this project was signed as part of IFC’s initiative to improve the country’s business environment and enhance the capacity of its small and medium enterprises. IFC and the council will share project costs.
Shaira Saleem, Chairperson of the Women Entrepreneurs Council, explained, “Handicraft is an ideal income-generating activity for people from the islands. This is a priority area for us. We are pleased that IFC has recognized the importance of linking the two sectors and decided to support the project.”
Gilles Galludec, IFC Country Manager for Sri Lanka and Maldives, who signed the agreement, said, “The overall objective of the program is to build linkages between the tourism industry and local communities. We hope that this initiative is the first of many such activities going forward.” Holiday resorts in Maldives will have the ability to build sustainable relationships with local communities and businesses and offer resorts’ guests a chance to experience the ‘Maldivian way of life’, he added.
Tourism is a key sector for the Maldivian economy, and handicrafts have a ready market. Currently, the country’s ‘one island, one resort’ model limits interaction between the resorts and the rest of the economy. This has led to very little interaction between tourists and local culture.
IFC will support the handicraft industry, providing workers with a chance to earn appropriate and justified income for their work. This activity is part of a wider linkage program to be carried out in the country’s tourism sector. IFC is also looking into building agricultural linkages between resorts and nearby communities.
The council’s ‘Blending Handicrafts and Tourism’ initiative will help craft workers develop viable business opportunities and build linkages between holiday resorts and local communities and businesses. It will also broaden awareness about Maldivian culture and crafts. With as many as 90 per cent of handicrafts sold in Maldives imported from other cheaper sources today, the program aims to promote the authenticity of local crafts with the help of linkages between tourism and handicraft industries.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, fosters sustainable economic growth in developing countries by financing private sector investment, mobilizing private capital in local and international financial markets, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. IFC’s vision is that poor people have the opportunity to escape poverty and improve their lives. In FY07, IFC committed $8.2 billion and mobilized an additional $3.9 billion through loan participations and structured finance for 299 investments in 69 developing countries. IFC also provided advisory services in 97 countries. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
About IFC SouthAsia Enterprise Development Facility
IFC-SEDF is a multidonor funded facility managed and operated by IFC. It is one of 11 regional programs managed by IFC worldwide. IFC-SEDF is funded by IFC, the governments of the Netherlands and Norway, the European Commission, DFID (United Kingdom), CIDA (Canada), and the Asian Development Bank. Set up to promote the growth of SMEs in the region, it facilitates increased access to finance and provides quality business development services to projects in Bangladesh, Bhutan, northeast India, the Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.
IFC-SEDF works to create a business enabling environment that is supportive of SMEs. It also assists in the value addition to firms through sector development, organization-specific advisory services, capacity building programs, training, and research. The ultimate goal is to help create market opportunities for SMEs, promoting economic growth and private sector development in the region.
In Sri Lanka and Maldives, the facility is jointly funded by IFC and the governments of the Netherlands and Norway.
About Women Entrepreneurs Council
The Women Entrepreneurs Council of the Maldives was formed in April 2004, with 44 members. It was established as a focal point to concentrate efforts and encourage, support, and empower women to achieve financial independence. The council focuses on creating and enhancing a commercial climate in the country and beyond its borders that is conducive to developing women-owned businesses. An important aspect of its work includes achieving the appropriate social and regulatory framework for developing these entrepreneurs; organizing national and local initiatives such as access to support schemes, counseling, and guidance; and providing access to physical resources and markets.
