Finance Ministry issued a loan of 1MVR 198 million via SME Development Finance Corporation (SDFC) directed at the small businesses operating in the Maldives, under the government’s recovery scheme. This includes small businesses, middle-class businesses, and self-employed people.
Under the stimulus package of MVR2.5 Billion, announced by the government, SDFC issues loans for small and middle-class businesses that earn less than 10 million on average per year. One of the conditions of this loan prohibits the termination of employees.
According to the information posted on the website of the Finance Ministry, 2983 business personnel have applied for the loan till last Monday. This amount divides into 1618 small businesses and 1365 self-employed people. The total budget for this amounts to MVR 485.4 million.
While the Ministry decides on issuing the loans for 1663 businesses, 1427 businesses have already been provided with the loan. The amount for this totals to MVR198 million. That is MVR185.6 million for small businesses and MVR.12.4 million for self-employed people.
This loan has been issued with a 6% interest rate for 3 years.