Chief Executive Officer of the National Entrepreneurship Development Company Ltd (NEDCO), Calvin Maurice, says the organisation has improved its efforts in working with entrepreneurs to ensure loans are repaid.
Speaking on the Delving Deeper Programme on Sunday evening, Mr. Maurice said NEDCO continues its mandate to offer a wide suite of entrepreneurial development services to help Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises, whose needs cannot be met by traditional lending agencies.
He pointed out that the number of loans in default have significantly improved in the recent past, following the ‘Credit Risk Facility’ that was instituted since 2019.
“It’s allowed us to do a better risk assessment. We see it in the numbers in terms of loans going to default. It has significantly changed. Less loans going to default and when they do, NEDCO, though we recover, we understand the group of entrepreneurs that we are dealing with. So there’s a lot of outreach.”
Mr. Maurice says NEDCO’s initiatives like the 50/50 loan facility also puts budding entrepreneurs in a healthy position.
“Where you can invest $25,000 at UTC and get $25,000 to do whatever to assist with whatever business operation. So initiatives like that, collateral being an issue, young persons can get these type of loan facilities to get them started, get them going, and we sustain them with not only the fund but training, mentorship, business advisory.”
This facility he said has been attracting young entrepreneurs.
“Entrepreneurs, especially the young ones, will tell you that they have no collateral. So that 50/50 loan, of course, as you say is $25,000, they do not need to have collateral. The $25,000 that is invested is indeed, is the collateral and it gives them an opportunity to build an investment, build savings. So therefore at the end of the year, at some point in time, on completing with repayment of that loan, they also have an investment.”