About 2% of finances offered by the Fund to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are not yet collected, while the total value of SMEs portfolio at SFD registered EGP 4 billion at the end of the first quarter this year, said Essam El-Korashy, head of SMEs development at Social Fund for Development. On the sidelines of the Arab Banking Forum convened under the slogan of “SMEs: The Arab Economic Strategic Choice", El-Korashy added that SFD targets increasing SMEs portfolio by a value ranging from EGP 700 million to EGP one billion by the end of 2012. Micro-finances portfolio registered EGP 400 million at the end of the first quarter, and the Fund targets raising it to EGP 700 million by the end of 2012, EL-Korashy said. SFD increased finances this year by 250%, registering the highest level since 20 years, despite the current deteriorated economy and political unrest. EL-Korashy added that SFD financed 18 thousand SMEs and 65 thousand micro-enterprises in 2011, thanks to many Egyptian banks such as National Bank of Egypt, Banque Misr and Banque Du Caire who expanded in financing this sector. Social Fund for Development (SFD)
