Mbabane: The Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg on July 20, 2020 launched the Financial Inclusion and Cluster Development (FINCLUDE) start-up workshop which aimed to assist aspiring women and youth agricultural entrepreneurs at grassroots level to easily access business finance.
According to information sourced from the Centre for Financial Inclusion (CFI) The Financial Inclusion and Cluster Development (FINCLUDE) project is a collaboration following an agreement between the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) and the Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini (GOE) through the Ministry of Finance (MoF).
The Centre for Financial Inclusion (CFI) is a semi-autonomous body under the auspices of the Ministry of Finance (MoF) which is responsible for taking the lead in co-ordinating the implementation of the Financial Inclusion Agenda for the country.
Speaking during the launch the minister said the workshop and the FINCLUDE Project will align with existing national policies such as the Strategic Roadmap 2019-2023 which is Government’s commitment to catapult the country into a growth path that will channel every liSwati into productive economic activities.
With this project, the minister said he believes that the inability for smallholder farmers to meet systematic and internationally accepted quality standards to enable access to international markets for their products will improve.
Through the inclusive cluster development concept, the FINCLUDE will stimulate the contribution of the rural economy to impact on economic resilience of these people and contribution to overall economic growth through farm and non-farm enterprise development.
The Financial Inclusion and Cluster Development (FINCLUDE) project is a collaboration following an agreement between the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) and the Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini (GOE) through the Ministry of Finance (MoF). The implementation of the project is aimed to enhance the sustainable livelihoods and incomes, particularly for the aspiring and existing women and youth entrepreneurs in the country.
Information sourced from the Centre for Financial Inclusion (CFI) the FINCLUDE project commenced around September 2019 and is set to have a duration for six years during which it will aim to increase the profitability and sustainability of rural economic activities through a comprehensive and multi-layered set of interventions.
FINCLUDE will provide support to stakeholders in the development of the rural economy to develop profitable value chains and support entrepreneurship in commodity-based clusters established in locations that offer competitive advantage for success. It (FINCLUDE Project) seeks to increase returns from sustainable farm and non-farm enterprise for rural people, including poor and youth, through efficient public-sector investment at the same time leveraging on the private sector participation. The farm enterprises will mainly focus on the project’s key commodities which are red meat (beef/goats), piggery, indigenous chicken, vegetables and legume seeds. Non-farm enterprises will initially focus on those enterprises which promote or enhance operations of the agricultural
